Arabic Phrases for Dummies® Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc

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Foreign Language/Arabic ™ Making Everything Easier! Your handy guide to everyday Arabic words and expressions Open the book and find:

Need to brush up on your Arabic conversation • Hundreds of useful Arabic Phrases skills? This fun, concise phrasebook will phrases at your fingertips jumpstart your comprehension, equipping you with the phrases necessary for common • Every grammatical and everyday situations — from traveling to linguistic point explained Arabic in plain English shopping to making small talk. This quick-and- easy approach will have you speaking basic • Arabic sounds Arabic in no time! represented in English • Get started with the basics — figure out characters Phrases the Arabic alphabet and practice the sounds • “Words to Know” sections to help you find the right • From nouns to numbers — understand word fast the rules of grammar, get to know Arabic verbs, and practice counting in Arabic • Favorite Arabic • Talk with native Arabic speakers — greet expressions and great people, ask questions, and talk about Arabic proverbs yourself • Enjoy yourself around town — from dining and shopping to transportation and entertainment, know the right words and phrases to get what you need • Quick & easy approach gives you • Handle on-the-job tasks — talk with Go to dummies.com® language fundamentals up front coworkers, use the phone, send letters for more! • Words to Know sections help you and e-mails, and more find the right words fast • Deal with emergencies — find medical and legal help when you need it • Pronunciation key helps you talk the talk

Amine Bouchentouf is $9.99 US / $11.99 CN / £6.99 UK a native Arabic, English, and French speaker born ISBN 978-0-470-22523-3 and raised in Casablanca, Bouchentouf Morocco. He teaches Arabic and lectures about relations between America and the Amine Bouchentouf Arab world. Author, Arabic For Dummies 02_225233-ftoc.indd ix 1/30/09 11:38:37 PM Arabic Phrases FOR DUMmIES‰

by Amine Bouchentouf

01_225233-ffirs.indd i 1/30/09 11:38:26 PM Arabic Phrases For Dummies® Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 111 River St. Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774 www.wiley.com Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published simultaneously in Canada No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or trans- mitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, 978-750-8400, fax 978-646- 8600. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, 201-748-6011, fax 201-748-6008, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions. Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies.com and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the prop- erty of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: THE PUBLISHER AND THE AUTHOR MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS WORK AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUD- ING WITHOUT LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NO WAR- RANTY MAY BE CREATED OR EXTENDED BY SALES OR PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS. THE ADVICE AND STRATEGIES CONTAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR EVERY SITUATION. THIS WORK IS SOLD WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THE PUBLISHER IS NOT ENGAGED IN REN- DERING LEGAL, ACCOUNTING, OR OTHER PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. IF PROFESSIONAL ASSIS- TANCE IS REQUIRED, THE SERVICES OF A COMPETENT PROFESSIONAL PERSON SHOULD BE SOUGHT. NEITHER THE PUBLISHER NOR THE AUTHOR SHALL BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES ARIS- ING HEREFROM. THE FACT THAT AN ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE IS REFERRED TO IN THIS WORK AS A CITATION AND/OR A POTENTIAL SOURCE OF FURTHER INFORMATION DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE AUTHOR OR THE PUBLISHER ENDORSES THE INFORMATION THE ORGANIZA- TION OR WEBSITE MAY PROVIDE OR RECOMMENDATIONS IT MAY MAKE. FURTHER, READERS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT INTERNET WEBSITES LISTED IN THIS WORK MAY HAVE CHANGED OR DISAPPEARED BETWEEN WHEN THIS WORK WAS WRITTEN AND WHEN IT IS READ. For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 800-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572- 3993, or fax 317-572-4002. For technical support, please visit www.wiley.com/techsupport. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Library of Congress Control Number: 2008923127 ISBN: 978-0-470-22523-3 Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

01_225233-ffirs.indd ii 1/30/09 11:38:26 PM About the Author

Amine Bouchentouf is a native English, Arabic, and French speaker born and raised in Casablanca, Morocco. Amine has been teaching Arabic and lecturing about relations between America and the Arab world in his spare time for over four years and has offered classes and seminars for students at Middlebury College, the Council on Foreign Relations, and various schools across the United States. He runs and main- tains the Web site www.al-baab.com (which means “gate- way” in Arabic).

Amine graduated from Middlebury College and has always been interested in promoting better relations between the West and the Middle East through dialogue and mutual understanding. Amine published his first book, Arabic: A Complete Course (Random House), soon after graduating college in order to help Americans understand Arabic language and culture. He has written Arabic For Dummies and Arabic Phrases For Dummies in an attempt to reach an even wider audience with the aim of fostering better relations through education.

He holds a degree in Economics from Middlebury and has extensive experience in the arena of international investing. He is a registered investment advisor and a member of the National Association of Securities Dealers. He is also the author of Commodities For Dummies.

Amine lives in New York City with his wife, Tracy. He is an avid traveler and has visited over 15 countries across the Middle East, Europe, and North and South America. Aside from his interest in languages, business, and travel, Amine enjoys biking, rollerblading, playing guitar, chess, and golf.

01_225233-ffirs.indd iii 1/30/09 11:38:26 PM Publisher’s Acknowledgments We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our Dummies online registration form located at www.dummies. com/register/. Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following: Acquisitions, Editorial, Composition and Media Development Project Coordinator: Compiler: Patrick Redmond Laura Peterson Nussbaum Layout and Graphics: Project Editor: Joan Friedman Reuben W. Davis, Acquisitions Editor: Stephanie D. Jumper, Lindsay Sandman Lefevere Christine Williams Assistant Editor: Proofreaders: Erin Calligan Mooney Caitie Copple, Melissa Cossell, Editorial Program Shannon Ramsey Coordinator: Joe Niesen Indexer: Claudia Bourbeau Senior Editorial Manager: Jennifer Ehrlich Editorial Supervisor: Carmen Krikorian Editorial Assistant: Jennette ElNaggar Cartoons: Rich Tennant, www.the5thwave.com

Publishing and Editorial for Consumer Dummies Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher, Consumer Dummies Kristin Ferguson-Wagstaffe, Product Development Director, Consumer Dummies Ensley Eikenburg, Associate Publisher, Travel Kelly Regan, Editorial Director, Travel Publishing for Technology Dummies Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher, Dummies Technology/General User Composition Services Gerry Fahey, Vice President of Production Services Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services

01_225233-ffirs.indd iv 1/30/09 11:38:26 PM Table of Contents

Introduction ...... 1 About This Book ...... 1 Conventions Used in This Book...... 2 Foolish Assumptions ...... 3 Icons Used in This Book ...... 3 Where to Go from Here ...... 4 Chapter 1: I Say It How? Speaking Arabic ...... 5 Taking Stock of What’s Familiar ...... 5 Discovering the Arabic Alphabet ...... 7 All about vowels ...... 7 All about consonants ...... 10 Tackling Tough Letters and Words ...... 15 Addressing Arabic Transcription ...... 15 Chapter 2: Grammar on a Diet: Just the Basics . . . . 17 Introducing Nouns, Adjectives, and Articles ...... 17 Getting a grip on nouns...... 18 Identifying adjectives ...... 18 Discovering definite and indefinite articles (and the sun and moon) ...... 19 Understanding the interaction between nouns and adjectives ...... 21 Creating Simple, Verb-Free Sentences ...... 23 To be or not to be: Sentences without verbs .....23 Building sentences with common prepositions ...... 25 Using demonstratives and forming sentences ...26 Forming “to be” sentences using personal pronouns ...... 28 Creating negative “to be” sentences ...... 30 “To be” in the past tense ...... 32 Working with Verbs...... 33 Digging up the past tense ...... 33 Examining the present tense ...... 36 Peeking into the future tense ...... 39 Chapter 3: Numerical Gumbo: Counting of All Kinds ...... 41 Talking Numbers ...... 41 Discovering Ordinal Numbers ...... 43

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Telling Time in Arabic ...... 45 Specifying the time of day ...... 46 Specifying minutes ...... 47 Referring to Days and Months ...... 49 Money, Money, Money ...... 52 Opening a bank account ...... 52 Using the ATM ...... 54 Exchanging currency ...... 55 Chapter 4: Making New Friends and Enjoying Small Talk ...... 57 Greetings! ...... 57 You say hello ...... 58 . . . I say goodbye ...... 58 How are you doing? ...... 59 I’m doing well! ...... 59 Making Introductions ...... 60 Asking “What’s your name?” ...... 60 Responding with “My name is . . .” ...... 60 Talking about Countries and Nationalities...... 61 Asking “Where are you from?” ...... 61 Answering “I am from . . .” ...... 62 Asking Questions ...... 63 Talking about Yourself and Your Family ...... 65 Talking about Work ...... 67 Shooting the Breeze: Talking about the Weather ....69 Chapter 5: Enjoying a Drink or a Snack (or a Meal!) ...... 73 All about Meals ...... 73 Breakfast ...... 74 Lunch...... 76 Dinner ...... 81 Enjoying a Meal at Home ...... 82 Dining Out...... 83 Perusing the menu ...... 83 Placing your order ...... 85 Finishing your meal and paying the bill ...... 87 Chapter 6: Shop ’til You Drop! ...... 89 Going to the Store...... 89 Browsing the merchandise ...... 90 Getting around the store ...... 91 Asking for a Particular Item ...... 92

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Comparing Merchandise ...... 95 Comparing two or more items ...... 95 Picking out the best item ...... 98 Shopping for Clothes ...... 100 Chapter 7: Making Leisure a Top Priority ...... 103 Visiting Museums ...... 103 Going to the Movies ...... 106 Touring Religious Sites ...... 109 A few rules to keep in mind ...... 109 The Hajj ...... 110 Sporting an Athletic Side ...... 111 Going to the Beach ...... 115 Playing Musical Instruments ...... 115 Popular Hobbies ...... 116 Chapter 8: When You Gotta Work ...... 119 Landing a Job ...... 119 Managing the Office Environment ...... 122 Interacting with your colleagues ...... 124 Giving orders ...... 129 Supplying your office ...... 131 Picking Up the Phone ...... 132 Dialing up the basics ...... 132 Beginning a phone conversation ...... 132 Asking to speak to someone...... 133 Making business appointments ...... 133 Dealing with voice mail ...... 135 Chapter 9: I Get Around: Transportation ...... 137 Traveling by Plane ...... 137 Making reservations ...... 137 Getting some legwork out of the verb “to travel” ...... 140 Registering at the airport ...... 141 Boarding the plane ...... 143 A brief departure on the verb “to arrive” ...... 144 Going through immigration and customs...... 145 Getting Around on Land ...... 147 Hailing a taxi ...... 148 Taking a bus ...... 149 Boarding a train ...... 150 Asking for Directions ...... 151 Asking “where” questions...... 151 Answering “where” questions ...... 151

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Asking with courtesy ...... 153 Could you repeat that?...... 153 Using command forms ...... 155 Chapter 10: Laying Down Your Weary Head: Hotel or Home ...... 159 Choosing the Right Accommodation ...... 160 Making a Reservation ...... 162 Figuring out the price ...... 163 Indicating the length of your stay...... 164 Checking In to the Hotel ...... 165 Checking Out of the Hotel ...... 167 Life at Home ...... 168 Chapter 11: Dealing with Emergencies ...... 171 Shouting Out for Help ...... 171 A little help with the verb “to help” ...... 172 Lending a hand ...... 175 Getting Medical Help ...... 176 Locating the appropriate doctor ...... 176 Talking about your body ...... 177 Explaining your symptoms ...... 178 Getting treatment ...... 179 Acquiring Legal Help ...... 180 Chapter 12: Ten Favorite Arabic Expressions . . . . . 183 marHaba bikum!...... 183 mumtaaz! ...... 183 al-Hamdu li-llah ...... 184 inshaa’ allah ...... 184 mabruk! ...... 185 bi ‘idni allah ...... 185 bi SaHHa ...... 185 taHiyyaat...... 186 muballagh ...... 186 tabaaraka allah ...... 187 Chapter 13: Ten Great Arabic Proverbs ...... 189 al-’amthaal noor al-kalaam...... 189 ‘a’mal khayr wa ‘ilqahu fii al-baHr...... 189 ‘uTlubuu al-’ilm min al-mahd ‘ilaa al-laHd...... 190 yad waaHida maa tusaffiq...... 190 al-Harbaa’ laa Yughaadir shajaratuh hattaa yakun mu’akkid ‘an shajara ‘ukhraa...... 190

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khaTa’ ma’roof ‘aHsan min Haqiiqa ghayr ma’roofa...... 191 as-sirr mithel al-Hamaama: ‘indamaa yughaadir yadii yaTiir...... 191 al-’aql li an-niDHaar wa al-kalb li as-simaa’...... 192 kul yawm min Hayaatuk SafHa min taariikhuk...... 192 li faatik bi liila faatik bi Hiila...... 192 Index ...... 193

02_225233-ftoc.indd ix 1/30/09 11:38:37 PM 03_225233-flast.indd x 1/30/09 11:39:05 PM Introduction

rabic, the official language of more than 20 coun- Atries, is the mother tongue of more than 300 mil- lion people. It’s spoken throughout the Middle East, from Morocco to Iraq. Also, because Arabic is the language of the Koran and Islam, it’s understood by more than 1.2 billion people across the world.

Due to recent geopolitical events, Arabic has cata- pulted to the top of the list of important world languages. Even in countries where Arabic isn’t the official language, people are scrambling to master this vital global language.

Arabic Phrases For Dummies is designed to equip you with phrases necessary to function in many life situations, from shopping to visiting the theater. So buckle up and enjoy the journey!

About This Book Arabic Phrases For Dummies is modular in nature; every chapter is organized in such a way that you don’t have to read the whole book in order to understand the topic that’s discussed. Feel free to jump through chapters and sections to suit your specific needs. Also, every grammatical and linguistic point is explained in plain English so that you can incorporate the concept immediately.

There are basically three different types of Arabic: Koranic Arabic, local dialects, and Modern Standard Arabic:

✓ Koranic Arabic is the Arabic used to write the Koran, the holy book for Muslims. This form of Arabic is very rigid and hasn’t changed much since the Koran was written approximately

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1,500 years ago. Koranic Arabic is widely used in religious circles for prayer, discussions of Islamic issues, and serious deliberations. Its usage is limited primarily within a strict religious context. It’s the equivalent of Biblical English. ✓ The regional dialects are the most informal type of Arabic. They tend to fall into three geo- graphical categories: the North African dialect (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya); the Egyptian dialect (Egypt, parts of Syria, Palestine, and Jordan); and Gulf Arabic (Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates). Even though the words are pronounced differently and some of the everyday expressions differ dramatically from region to region, speakers from different regions can understand each other. ✓ Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) is the most widely used and understood form of Arabic in the world. While it’s not the native language of any speaker of Arabic, it’s used in schools, news broadcasts, and other formal settings. It’s less rigid than Koranic Arabic but more formal than the local dialects.

This book focuses on MSA, but I include examples from regional dialects as well.

Conventions Used in This Book Here are a couple key conventions I use throughout the book:

✓ I present Arabic phrases in transliteration (Arabic sounds represented with English characters). You can see the Arabic alphabet in Chapter 1. ✓ Throughout the book, each new Arabic word appears in boldface. It’s followed by its pronunciation and its English translation in parentheses.

04_225233-intro.indd 2 1/30/09 11:39:22 PM Introduction 3 Foolish Assumptions In writing Arabic Phrases For Dummies, I made the following assumptions about my readers:

✓ You’ve had little or no exposure to the Arabic language, or else you’ve been exposed to Arabic but need to brush up on your language skills. ✓ You’re interested in mastering Arabic for either personal or professional reasons. ✓ You want to be able to speak a few words and phrases now so that you can communicate basic information in Arabic.

Icons Used in This Book To help you get in and get out of this book easily and efficiently, I use icons that identify important pieces of information by category. The following icons appear in this book:

When you see this icon, read carefully. It points to information that will directly improve your Arabic language skills.

I use this icon to bring your attention to information that you definitely want to keep in mind when studying and practicing Arabic.

Even though this isn’t a grammar book, it does include important grammar lessons you need to be aware of. This icon is attached to major grammar points that will help you learn and use the Arabic language.

This icon points out nonverbal methods of communication common in Arabic-speaking countries and among Arabic speakers. I use this icon to fill the gap between language and culture so that you know the cultural con- texts in which you can use newly discovered words and phrases.

04_225233-intro.indd 3 1/30/09 11:39:22 PM 4 Arabic Phrases For Dummies Where to Go from Here Go ahead and start anywhere. You don’t have to go in a specific order. Just choose a topic that seems appealing, find the corresponding chapter in the table of contents, and start learning Arabic!

But if you’ve never taken Arabic before, you may want to read Chapters 1 and 2 before tackling the later chapters. They give you some basics, such as how to pronounce the sounds.

04_225233-intro.indd 4 1/30/09 11:39:22 PM Chapter 1 I Say It How? Speaking Arabic

In This Chapter ▶ Discovering English words that come from Arabic ▶ Figuring out the Arabic alphabet ▶ Practicing the sounds

arHaba (mahr-hah-bah; welcome) to the won- Mderful world of Arabic! In this chapter, I ease you into the language by showing you some familiar English words that trace their roots to Arabic. You discover the Arabic alphabet and its beautiful letters, and I give you tips on how to pronounce those letters.

Part of exploring a new language is discovering a new culture and a new way of looking at things, so in this first chapter of Arabic Phrases For Dummies, you begin your discovery of Arabic and its unique characteristics.

Taking Stock of What’s Familiar If English is your primary language, part of grasping a new lougha (loo-ghah; language) is creating con- nections between the kalimaat (kah-lee-maht; words) of the lougha, in this case Arabic and English. You may be surprised to hear that quite a few English words trace their origins to Arabic. For example, did you know that “magazine,” “candy,” and “coffee” are

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actually Arabic words? Table 1-1 lists some familiar English words with Arabic origins.

Table 1-1 Arabic Origins of English Words English Arabic Origin Arabic Meaning admiral amir al-baHr Ruler of the Sea alcohol al-kuHul a mixture of powdered antimony alcove al-qubba a dome or arch algebra al-jabr to reduce or consolidate almanac al-manakh a calendar arsenal daar As-SinaaH house of manufacture azure al-azward lapis lazuli candy qand cane sugar coffee qahwa coffee cotton quTun cotton elixir al-iksiir philosopher’s stone gazelle ghazaal gazelle hazard az-zahr dice magazine al-makhzan a storehouse; a place of storage mattress matraH a place where things are thrown ream rizma a bundle saffron za’fran saffron Sahara SaHraa’ desert satin zaytuun Arabic name for a Chinese city sherbet sharaba to drink sofa Sofaa a cushion sugar sukkar sugar zero Sifr zero

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As you can see from the table, Arabic has had a major influence on the English language. Some English words such as “admiral” and “arsenal” have an indi- rect Arabic origin, whereas others, such as “coffee” and “cotton,” are exact matches. The influence runs the other way, too, especially when it comes to relatively contemporary terms. For example, the word tilifizyuun (tee-lee-fee-zee-yoon; television) comes straight from the word “television.”

Discovering the Arabic Alphabet Unlike English and other Romance languages, you write and read Arabic from right to left. Like English, Arabic has both vowels and consonants, but the vowels in Arabic aren’t actual letters. Rather, Arabic vowels are symbols that you place on top of or below consonants to create certain sounds. As for consonants, Arabic has 28 different consonants, and each one is represented by a letter. In order to vocalize these letters, you place a vowel above or below the particular consonant. For example, when you put a fatHa, a vowel representing the “ah” sound, above the consonant representing the letter “b,” you get the sound “bah.” When you take the same consonant and use a kasra, which represents the “ee” sound, you get the sound “bee.”

All about vowels Arabic has three main vowels. Luckily, they’re very simple to pronounce because they’re similar to English vowels. However, it’s important to realize that Arabic also has vowel derivatives that are as important as the main vowels. These vowel derivatives fall into three categories: double vowels, long vowels, and diphthongs. In this section, I walk you through all the different vowels, vowel derivatives, and vowel combinations.

Main vowels The three main Arabic vowels are:

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✓ fatHah: The first main vowel in Arabic is called a fatHa (feht-hah). A fatHa is the equivalent of the short “a” in “hat” or “cat.” Occasionally, a fatHa also sounds like the short “e” in “bet” or “set.” Much like the other vowels, the way you pronounce a fatHa depends on what consonants come before or after it. In Arabic script, the fatHa is written as a small horizontal line above a consonant. In English transcription, which I use in this book, it’s simply represented by the letter “a,” as in the words kalb (kah-leb; dog) or walad (wah-lahd; boy). ✓ damma: The second main Arabic vowel is the damma (dah-mah). A damma sounds like the “uh” in “foot” or “book.” In Arabic script, it’s written like a tiny backward “e” above a particular consonant. In English transcription, it’s represented by the letter “u,” as in funduq (foon-dook; hotel) or suHub (soo-hoob; clouds). ✓ kasra: The third main vowel in Arabic is the kasra (kahs-rah), which sounds like the long “e” in “feet” or “treat.” The kasra is written the same way as a fatHa — as a small horizontal line — except that it goes underneath the consonant. In English transcription, it’s written as an “i,” as in bint (bee-neht; girl) or ‘islaam (ees-lahm; Islam).

Double vowels One type of vowel derivative is the double vowel, which is known in Arabic as tanwiin (tahn-ween). The process of tanwiin is a fairly simple one: Basically, you take a main vowel and place the same vowel right next to it, thus creating two vowels, or a double vowel. The sound that the double vowel makes depends on the main vowel that’s doubled. Here are all possible combinations of double vowels:

✓ Double fatHa: tanwiin with fatHa creates the “an” sound, as in ‘ahlan wa sahlan (ahel-an wah sahel-an; Hi). ✓ Double damma: tanwiin with damma creates the “oun” sound. For example, kouratoun (koo- rah-toon; ball) contains a double damma.

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✓ Double kasra: tanwiin with kasra makes the “een” sound, as in SafHatin (sahf-hah-teen; page).

Long vowels Long vowels are derivatives that elongate the main vowels. Think of the difference between long vowels and short (main) vowels in terms of a musical beat, and you should be able to differentiate between them much more easily. If a main vowel lasts for one beat, then its long vowel equivalent lasts for two beats. Whereas you create double vowels by writing two main vowels next to each other, you create long vowels by adding a letter to one of the main vowels. Each main vowel has a corresponding consonant that elongates it. Here are a few examples to help you get your head around this long-vowel process:

✓ To create a long vowel form of a fatHa, you attach an ‘alif to the consonant that the fatHa is associated with. In English transcription, the long fatHa form is written as “aa,” such as in kitaab (kee-taab; book) or baab (bahb; door). The “aa” means that you hold the vowel sound for two beats as opposed to one. ✓ The long vowel form of damma is obtained by attaching a waaw to the consonant with the damma. This addition elongates the vowel “uh” into a more pronounced “uu,” such as in nuur (noohr; light) or ghuul (ghoohl; ghost). Make sure you hold the “uu” vowel for two beats and not one. ✓ To create a long vowel form of a kasra, you attach a yaa’ to the consonant with the kasra. Just as the ‘alif elongates the fatHa and the waaw elongates the damma, the yaa’ elongates the kasra. Some examples include the “ii” in words like kabiir (kah-beer; big) and Saghiir (sah-gheer; small).

The Arabic characters for the long vowels are shown in Table 1-2.

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Table 1-2 Arabic Vowel Characters Arabic Name of the Explanation Character ‘alif To create a long vowel form of a fatHa waaw To create a long vowel form of a damma yaa’ To create a long vowel form of a kasra

Diphthongs Diphthongs in Arabic are a special category of vowels because, in essence, they’re monosyllabic sounds that begin with one vowel and glide into another vowel. A common example in English is the sound at the end of the word “toy.” Fortunately, Arabic has only two diphthong sounds used to distinguish between the yaa’ and the waaw forms of long vowels. When you come across either of these two letters, one of the first questions to ask yourself is: “Is this a long vowel or a diphthong?” There’s an easy way to determine which is which: When either the yaa’ or the waaw is a diphthong, you see a sukun (soo-koon) above the consonant. A sukun is similar to the main vowels in that it’s a little symbol (a small circle) that you place above the consonant. However, unlike the vowels, you don’t vocalize the sukun — it’s almost like a silent vowel. So when a waaw or yaa’ has a sukun over it, you know that the sound is a diphthong. Here are some examples:

✓ waaw diphthongs: yawm (yah-oom; day); nawm (nah-oom; sleep); Sawt (sah-oot; noise) ✓ yaa’ diphthongs: bayt (bah-yet; house); ‘ayn (ah- yen; eye); layla (lah-ye-lah; night)

All about consonants Arabic uses 28 different consonants, and each consonant is represented by a different letter. Because the Arabic alphabet is written in cursive, most of the letters connect with each other. For this reason, every single letter that represents a consonant actually can be written four different ways depending on its position in a word — whether it’s in the initial, medial, or final position, or whether it stands alone. In English transcription of the Arabic script, all letters are case-sensitive.

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Thankfully, most of the consonants in Arabic have English equivalents. Unfortunately, a few Arabic consonants are quite foreign to nonnative speakers. Table 1-3 shows all 28 Arabic consonants, how they’re written in Arabic, how they’re transcribed in English, and how they sound.

Table 1-3 Arabic Consonants Arabic Name of Pronun- Sounds Like . . . Example Character the Letter ciation ‘alif (‘a) ah-leef Sounds like the ‘ab (ah-b; “a” in “apple” father) baa’ (b) bah Sounds like the baab “b” in “boy” (bahb; door) taa’ (t) tah Sounds like the tilmiidh “t” in “table” (teel-meez; student) thaa’ (th) thah Sounds like the thalaatha “th” in “think” (thah-lah- thah; three) jiim (j) jeem Sounds like the jamiil (jah- “s” in “measure” meel; pretty) Haa’ (H) hah No equivalent in Harr English; imagine (hah-r; hot) the sound you make when you want to blow on your reading glasses to clean them; that soft, raspy noise that comes out is the letter Haa’. khaa’ (kh) khah Sounds a lot khuukh like “Bach” (kh-oo-kh; in German or peach) “Baruch” in Hebrew daal (d) dahl Sounds like the daar “d” in dog (dah-r; house) (continued)

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Table 1-3 (continued) Arabic Name of Pronun- Sounds Like . . . Example Character the Letter ciation dhaal (dh) dhahl Sounds like the dhahab “th” in those (thah-hab; gold) raa’ (r) rah Like the Spanish rajul “r,” rolled really (rah- jool; fast man) zaay (z) zay Sounds like the zawja (zah- “z” in “zebra” oo-ja; wife) siin (s) seen Sounds like the samak (sah- “s” in “snake” mahk; fish) shiin (sh) sheen Sounds like the shams “sh” in “sheep” (shah-mes; sun) Saad (S) sahd A very deep Sadiiq (sah- “s” sound you deek; friend) can make if you open your mouth really wide and lower your jaw Daad (D) dahd A very deep “d” Dabaab sound; the exact (dah- bahb; same sound as fog) a Saad except that you use a “d” instead of an “s” Taa’ (T) tah A deep “t” Tabiib sound; start (tah-beeb; off by saying a doctor) regular “t” and then lower your mouth to make it rounder DHaa’ dhah Take the “th” DHahr (DH) as in “those” (dha-her; and draw it to back) the back of your throat

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Arabic Name of Pronun- Sounds Like . . . Example Character the Letter ciation ‘ayn (‘) ayen No equivalent iraaq in any of the (ee-rahk; Romance Iraq) languages; produced at the very back of the throat. Breathe heavily and consistently through your esophagus and then intermit- tently choke off the airflow so that you create a staccato noise ghayn (gh) ghayen Sounds like the ghariib French “r” in (ghah-reeb; “rendezvous”; strange) it’s created at the back of the throat faa’ (f) fah Sounds like the funduq “f” in “Frank” (foon-dook; hotel) qaaf (q) qahf Similar to the qahwa letter “k,” (qah-wah; but produced coffee) much farther at the back of the throat; you should feel airflow being constricted at the back of your throat kaaf (k) kahf Sounds like the kutub “k” in “keeper” (koo-toob; books) (continued)

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Table 1-3 (continued) Arabic Name of Pronun- Sounds Like . . . Example Character the Letter ciation laam (l) lahm Sounds like the lisaan “l” in “llama” (lee-sahn; tongue) miim (m) meem Sounds like the Makhzan “m” in “Mary” (mah-khzan; storehouse) nuun (n) noon Sounds like the naDHiif “n” in “no” (nah-dheef; clean) haa’ (h) haah Created by huwa exhaling heav- (hoo-wah; ily; very differ- him) ent from the Haa’ earlier in the list. (Think of yourself as a marathon runner who’s just finished a long race and is breathing heavily through the lungs to replenish your oxygen.) waaw (w) wahw Sounds like the waziir “w” in “winner” (wah-zeer; minister)

yaa’ (y) yaah Sounds like the yamiin (yah- “y” in “yes” meen; right)

To sound as fluent as possible, memorize as many of the letters as you can and try to associate each letter with the Arabic words in which it appears. The trick to getting the pronunciation of some of the more exotic Arabic sounds is repetition, repetition, and even more repetition!

05_225233-ch01.indd 14 1/30/09 11:39:51 PM Chapter 1: I Say It How? Speaking Arabic 15 Tackling Tough Letters and Words In this section, I help you focus on pronunciation of difficult letters. Here are some difficult letters and some related words you should familiarize yourself with:

✓ Haa’: Hamraa’ (hahm-raah; red); Hassan (hah- san; man’s name); Hiwaar (hee-war; conversation); Haziin (hah-zeen; sad) ✓ ‘ayn: ‘ajiib (ah-jeeb; amazing); ‘aziima (ah-zee- mah; determination); ‘ariiD (ah-reed; wide) ✓ qaaf: qif (kee-f; stop); qird (kee-red; monkey); qaws (qah-wes; bow) ✓ ghayn: ghaDbaan (ghad-bahn; angry); ghurfa (ghoor-fah; room); ghadan (ghah-dan; tomorrow)

The difference between native Arabic speakers and nonnatives is enunciation. So your challenge is to enunciate your letters clearly — particularly the more difficult ones. Practice these words over and over until you feel comfortable repeating them quickly and distinctly.

Addressing Arabic Transcription The transcription I use in this book is a widely used and universally recognized method of transcrib- ing Arabic to English. Students of Arabic across the United States and around the world use this method. It’s very helpful for beginners because it allows you to speak the language without actually knowing how to read Arabic script.

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In the transcription method used in this book, every letter in Arabic is represented by a letter in Roman script. It’s important to note that this method is case- sensitive, which means that a lowercase Roman letter represents a different letter in the Arabic script than a capital Roman letter.

Transcription is a very helpful tool for beginners, but it’s recommended that intermedi- ate and advanced students of Arabic master the fundamentals of the Arabic script.

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In This Chapter ▶ Playing around with nouns and adjectives ▶ Using definite and indefinite articles ▶ Forming simple sentences ▶ Getting to know Arabic verbs

rammar is the glue that binds all the different G elements of language together and allows us to communicate using a defined set of rules. This chapter gives you the most important of those rules.

Introducing Nouns, Adjectives, and Articles Nouns name a person, place, thing, quality, or action. Adjectives modify nouns. Although nouns and adjectives go hand in hand, the best way to understand how they work in Arabic is to address each one separately.

06_225233-ch02.indd 17 1/30/09 11:40:17 PM 18 Arabic Phrases For Dummies Getting a grip on nouns In Arabic, every noun has a masculine, feminine, singular, and plural form. Table 2-1 lists some common Arabic nouns. You’ll notice that I’ve listed both singular and plural forms of some nouns, as well as masculine (M) and feminine (F) forms of others.

Table 2-1 Common Nouns in Arabic Arabic Pronunciation Translation walad wah-lad boy ‘awlaad aw-lad boys bint bee-net girl banaat bah-nat girls tilmiidh teel-meez student (M) tilmiidha teel-mee-zah student (F) mudarris moo-dah-rees teacher (M) mudarrisa moo-dah-ree-sah teacher (F) kitaab kee-tab book Taawila tah-wee-lah table sayyaara sah-yah-rah car

Identifying adjectives In Arabic, an adjective must be in agreement with the noun it modifies in both gender and plurality. Table 2-2 presents some common adjectives in both the feminine and masculine forms.

Table 2-2 Common Adjectives in Arabic Arabic Pronunciation Translation kabiir kah-beer big (M) kabiira kah-bee-rah big (F)

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Arabic Pronunciation Translation Saghiir sah-gheer small (M) Saghiira sah-ghee-rah small (F) Tawiil tah-weel tall (M) Tawiila tah-wee-lah tall (F) qaSiir qah-seer short (M) qaSiira qah-see-rah short (F) jamiil jah-meel beautiful/ handsome (M) jamiila jah-mee-lah beautiful/pretty (F)

Notice that all you do is add the suffix -a to the masculine adjective to obtain its feminine form. This rule applies to all regular adjective forms.

One of the biggest differences between adjective and noun interactions in the English and Arabic languages is that nouns in Arabic come before the adjectives. In English, nouns always come after their adjectives.

Discovering definite and indefinite articles (and the sun and moon) A common trait that nouns and adjectives share in the Arabic language is that both can be modi- fied using definite article prefixes. To refresh your memory, an article is a part of speech that you use to indicate nouns or adjectives and specify their applica- tions. In English, there are two types of articles: indefinite and definite. The indefinite articles in English

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are “a” and “an,” such as in “a book” or “an umbrella.” The definite article is the word “the,” as in “the book” or “the umbrella.”

Unlike English, Arabic has no outright indefinite article; instead, the indefinite article in Arabic is always implied. For example, when you say kitaab (kee-tab; book), you mean both “book” and “a book.” Similarly, madrasa (mad-rah-sah; school) means both “school” and “a school.” However, Arabic does employ a definite article, which is the prefix you attach to either the noun or the adjective you want to define.

The rule The definite article in Arabic is the prefix al-. When you want to define a noun or adjective, you simply attach this prefix to the word. For example, “the book” is al-kitaab, and “the school” is al-madrasa.

The inevitable exceptions Sometimes, the “l” in the prefix al- drops off and is replaced by a letter identical to the first letter of the word being defined. For example, the word nuur (noor) means “light” in Arabic. If you want to say “the light,” you say an-nuur (ah-noor), replacing the “l” in al- with the first letter of the definite word.

So how do you know whether to use al- or another definite article prefix format? The answer’s really cool. Every single letter in Arabic falls into one of two categories: sun letters and moon letters. Every word that begins with a moon letter gets the prefix al-, and every word that begins with a sun letter gets the prefix a- followed by its sun letter. Table 2-3 lists all the sun letters. Every other letter in Arabic is automatically a moon letter.

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Table 2-3 The Sun Letters Arabic Pronunciation Translation taa t thaa th daal d dhaal dh raa r zay z siin s

shiin sh Saad S Daad D Taa T Dhaa DH nuun n

Understanding the interaction between nouns and adjectives In Arabic, the way you pair up nouns and adjectives creates definite and indefinite phrases.

Indefinite phrases To create an indefinite phrase, all you do is take an undefined noun and add to it an undefined adjective. For example, to say “a big book” or “big book,” you add the adjective kabiir (kah-beer; big) to the noun kitaab (kee-tab; book). So the phrase kitaab kabiir means “a big book” in Arabic. Here are some other examples:

✓ walad Tawiil (wah-lad tah-weel; a tall boy) ✓ bint jamiila (bee-net jah-mee-lah; a pretty girl) ✓ Taawila Hamraa’ (tah-wee-lah ham-rah; a red table)

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Adding more descriptive words to the noun is very simple: Because adjectives follow the noun in Arabic, you just add an extra adjective and you’re done! But don’t forget to add the conjunction wa (wah; and) between the adjectives. Check out some examples:

✓ walad Tawiil wa kabiir (wah-lad tah-weel wah kah-beer; a tall and big boy) ✓ bint Tawiila wa jamiila (bee-net tah-wee-lah wah jah-mee-lah; a tall and pretty girl) ✓ Taawila Hamraa’ wa qaSiira (tah-wee-lah ham- rah wah qah-see-rah; a red and short table)

Definite phrases The biggest difference between creating an indefinite phrase and a definite phrase is the use of the definite article prefix al-. Both noun and adjective must be defined using the definite article prefix. For example, to say “the big book,” you say al-kitaab al-kabiir. Here are some examples of definite phrases:

✓ al-walad aT-Tawiil (al-wah-lad ah-tah-weel; the big boy) ✓ al-bint al-jamiila (al-bee-net al-jah-mee-lah; the pretty girl) ✓ aT-Taawila al-Hamraa’ (ah-tah-wee-lah al-ham- rah; the red table)

Using similar patterns, you can create a defined phrase using multiple adjectives. Just like in indefinite phrases, make sure you use the conjunction wa between adjectives:

✓ al-walad aT-Tawiil wa al-kabiir (al-wah-lad ah- tah-weel wah al-kah-beer; the tall and big boy) ✓ al-bint aT-Tawiila wa al-jamiila (al-bee-net ah- tah-wee-lah wah al-jah-mee-lah; the tall and pretty girl) ✓ aT-Taawila al-Hamraa’ wa al-qaSiira (ah-tah- wee-lah al-ham-rah wah al-qah-see-rah; the red and short table)

06_225233-ch02.indd 22 1/30/09 11:40:18 PM Chapter 2: Grammar on a Diet: Just the Basics 23 Creating Simple, Verb-Free Sentences There are two ways to form sentences in Arabic: You can manipulate definite and indefinite nouns and adjectives, or you can pull together nouns, adjectives, and verbs.

To be or not to be: Sentences without verbs There’s actually no “to be” verb in the Arabic language. You create “to be” sentences by manipulating indefinite and definite nouns and adjectives.

When you put an indefinite noun with an indefinite adjective, you create an indefinite phrase. Similarly, when you add a definite adjective to a definite noun, you end up with a definite phrase. So what happens when you combine a definite noun with an indefinite adjective? This combination — defined noun and undefined adjective — produces an “is/are” sentence similar to what you get when you use the verb “to be” in English.

Take the defined noun al-kitaab (the book) and add to it the indefinite adjective kabiir (big). The resulting phrase is al-kitaab kabiir, which means “The book is big.” Here are some more examples to illustrate the construction of “is/are” sentences:

✓ as-sayyaara khadraa’. (ah-sah-yah-rah kad-rah; The car is green.) ✓ aT-Taaliba dakiiya. (ah-tah-lee-bah dah-kee-yah; The student is smart.) (F) ✓ al-‘ustaadh Tawiil. (al-oos-taz tah-weel; The professor is tall.) (M)

If you want to use additional adjectives in these verb- free sentences, you simply add the conjunction wa. Here are some examples of “is/are” sentences with multiple adjectives:

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✓ as-sayyaara khadraa’ wa sarii’a. (ah-sah-yah-rah kad-rah wah sah-ree-ah; The car is green and fast.) ✓ aT-Taaliba dakiiya wa laTiifa. (ah-tah-lee-bah dah-kee-yah wah lah-tee-fah; The student is smart and nice.) (F) ✓ al-‘ustaadh Tawiil wa Sa’b. (al-oos-taz tah-weel wah sahb; The professor is tall and difficult.) (M)

This construct is fairly flexible, and if you change the nature of one of the adjectives, you radically alter the meaning of the jumla (joom-lah; sentence). For instance, the examples all show a defined noun with two indefinite adjectives. What happens when you mix things up and add an indefinite noun to an indefinite adjective and a definite adjective?

Consider the example al-bint SaHiiHa wa qawiiya (The girl is healthy and strong). Keep al-bint as a definite noun but change the indefinite adjective SaHiiHa into its definite version, aS-SaHiiHa; also, drop the wa, and keep qawiiya as an indefinite adjective. The resulting phrase is al-bint aS-SaHiiHa qawiiya, which means “The healthy girl is strong.”

You can grasp what’s going on here by dividing the terms into clauses: The first clause is the definite noun/definite adjective combination al-bint aS-SaHiiHa (the healthy girl); the second clause is the indefinite adjective qawiiya (strong). Combining these clauses is the same as combining a definite noun with an indefinite adjective — the result is an “is/are” sentence. Here are more examples to help clear up any confusion regarding this concept:

✓ as-sayyaara al-khadraa’ sarii’a. (ah-sah-yah-rah al-kad-rah sah-ree-ah; The green car is fast.) ✓ aT-Taaliba ad-dhakiiya laTiifa. (ah-tah-lee-bah ah-dhah-kee-yah lah-tee-fah; The smart student is nice.) (F) ✓ al-‘ustaadh aT-Tawiil Sa’b. (al-oos-taz ah-tah- weel sahb; The tall professor is difficult.) (M)

06_225233-ch02.indd 24 1/30/09 11:40:18 PM Chapter 2: Grammar on a Diet: Just the Basics 25 Building sentences with common prepositions Prepositions indicate a relationship between substantive and other types of words, such as adjectives, verbs, nouns, or other substantives. Table 2-4 lists the most common prepositions you’re likely to use in Arabic.

Table 2-4 Common Prepositions Arabic Pronunciation Translation min meen from fii fee in ‘ilaa ee-lah to ma’a mah-ah with ‘alaa ah-lah on qariib min qah-reeb meen close to ba’iid min bah-eed meen far from ‘amaama ah-mah-mah in front of waraa’a wah-rah-ah behind taHta tah-tah underneath fawqa faw-qah above bijaanibi bee-jah-nee-bee next to

You can use these prepositions to construct clauses and phrases using both indefinite and definite nouns and adjectives. Here are some examples:

✓ al-‘ustaadha fii al-jaami’a. (al-oos-tah-zah fee al-jah- mee-ah; The professor is in the university.) (F) ✓ al-maT’am bijaanibi al-funduq. (al-mat-ham bee- jah-nee-bee al-foon-dook; The restaurant is next to the hotel.)

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✓ as-sayyaara al-bayDaa’ waraa’a al-manzil. (ah- sah-yah-rah al-bay-dah wah-rah-ah al-man-zeel; The white car is behind the house.) ✓ al-walad al-laTiif ma’a al-mudarris. (al-wah-lad ah-lah-teef mah-ah al-moo-dah-rees; The nice boy is with the teacher.)

In addition, you can use multiple adjectives with both the subject and object nouns:

✓ al-‘imra’a al-jamiila fii as-sayyaara as-sarii’a. (al- eem-rah-ah al-jah-mee-lah fee ah-sah-yah-rah ah-sah- ree-ah; The beautiful woman is in the fast car.) ✓ al-mudarissa ad-dakiyya ‘amaama al-madrasa al- bayDaa’. (al-moo-dah-ree-sah ah-dah-kee-yah ah- mah-mah al-mad-rah-sah al-bay-dah; The smart teacher is in front of the white school.) (F) ✓ al-kursiiy aS-Saghiir waraa’a aT-Taawila al- kabiira. (al-koor-see ah-sah-gheer wah-rah-ah ah- tah-wee-lah al-kah-bee-rah; The small chair is behind the big table.)

Using demonstratives and forming sentences A demonstrative indicates the noun that you’re referring to. Common demonstratives in English are the words “this” and “that.” If a demonstrative refers to a number of objects (such as “those” or “these”), it’s gender-neutral and may be used for both masculine and feminine objects. If you’re using a singular demonstrative (“this” or “that”), it must agree with the gender of the object being singled out.

Following are demonstratives in the singular format:

✓ haadhaa (hah-zah; this) (M) ✓ haadhihi (hah-zee-hee; this) (F) ✓ dhaalika (zah-lee-kah; that) (M) ✓ tilka (teel-kah; that) (F)

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Here are the plural demonstratives, which are gender-neutral:

✓ haa’ulaa’i (hah-oo-lah-ee; these) ✓ ‘ulaa’ika (oo-lah-ee-kah; those)

You can combine demonstratives with both definite and indefinite nouns and adjectives. For example, to say “this boy,” add the definite noun al-walad (boy) to the demonstrative haadhaa (this; M); because demonstratives always come before the nouns they identify, the resulting phrase is haadhaa al-walad. Here are more examples of this construct:

✓ haadhihi al-bint (hah-zee-hee al-bee-net; this girl) ✓ ‘ulaa’ika al-banaat (oo-lah-ee-kah al-bah-nat; those girls) ✓ haa’ulaa’i al-‘awlaad (hah-oo-lah-ee al-aw-lad; these boys) ✓ tilka al-‘ustaadha (teel-kah al-oos-tah-zah; that professor) (F) ✓ dhaalika al-kitaab (zah-lee-kah al-kee-tab; that book)

When a demonstrative is followed by a defined noun, you get a definite clause, as in the examples in the preceding list. However, when you attach an indefinite noun to a demonstrative, the result is an “is/are” sentence. For instance, if you add the demonstrative haadhaa to the indefinite subject noun walad, you get haadhaa walad (hah-zah wah-lad; This is a boy). Using the examples from the preceding list, I show you what happens when you drop the definite article from the subject noun in a demonstrative clause:

✓ haadhihi bint. (hah-zee-hee bee-net; This is a girl.) ✓ ‘ulaa’ika banaat. (oo-lah-ee-kah bah-nat; Those are girls.)

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✓ haa’ulaa’i ‘awlaad. (hah-oo-lah-ee aw-lad; These are boys.) ✓ tilka ‘ustaadha. (teel-kah oos-tah-zah; That is a professor.) (F) ✓ dhaalika kitaab. (zah-lee-kah kee-tab; That is a book.)

When you combine a demonstrative clause with a definite subject noun and an indefinite adjective, the resulting phrase is a more descriptive “is/are” sentence:

✓ haadhihi al-bint jamiila. (hah-zee-hee al-bee-net jah-mee-lah; This girl is pretty.) ✓ ‘ulaa’ika al-banaat Tawiilaat. (oo-lah-ee-kah al- bah-nat tah-wee-lat; Those girls are tall.) ✓ tilka al-madrasa kabiira. (teel-kah al-mad-rah- sah kah-bee-rah; That school is big.)

Conversely, when you combine a demonstrative clause with a definite subject noun and a definite adjective, you get a regular demonstrative phrase:

✓ haadhaa ar-rajul al-jamiil (hah-zah ah-rah-jool al-jah-meel; that handsome man) ✓ dhaalika al-kitaab al-‘ajiib (zah-lee-kah al-kee- tab al-ah-jeeb; that amazing book) ✓ tilka al-madiina aS-Saghiira (teel-kah al-mah- dee-nah ah-sah-ghee-rah; that small city)

Forming “to be” sentences using personal pronouns Personal pronouns stand in for people, places, things, or ideas. Table 2-5 presents all the major personal pronouns in the Arabic language.

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In the translation and conjugation tables in this section and throughout this book, in addition to singular and plural denotations, you see a form labeled dual. This number form doesn’t exist in English. It is reserved for describing two items (no more, no less).

Table 2-5 Personal Pronouns Arabic Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa ah-nah I/me ‘anta an-tah you (MS) ‘anti an-tee you (FS) huwa hoo-wah he/it hiya hee-yah she/it naHnu nah-noo we ‘antum an-toom you (MP) ‘antunna an-too-nah you (FP) hum hoom they (MP) hunna hoo-nah they (FP) ‘antumaa an-too-mah you (dual) humaa hoo-mah they (M/dual) humaa hoo-mah they (F/dual)

The personal pronoun always comes before the predi- cate noun that it designates, and it also creates an “is/ are” sentence. For instance, when you say hiya bint (hee-yah bee-net), you mean “She is a girl.” Similarly, huwa walad (hoo-wah wah-lad) means “He is a boy.” The meaning changes slightly when the subject noun is defined. For example, hiya al-bint means “She is the girl,” and huwa al-walad means “He is the boy.” Here are some more examples:

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✓ ‘anaa rajul. (ah-nah rah-jool; I am a man.) ✓ ‘anaa ar-rajul. (ah-nah ah-rah-jool; I am the man.) ✓ hum ‘awlaad. (hoom aw-lad; They are boys.) ✓ hiya al-’imra’a. (hee-yah al-eem-rah-ah; She is the woman.) ✓ ‘anta kabiir. (an-tah kah-beer; You are big.) (MS) ✓ ‘anti jamiila. (an-tee jah-mee-lah; You are beautiful.) (FS) ✓ ‘antum su’adaa’. (an-toom soo-ah-dah; You are happy.) (MP) ✓ ‘anti bint jamiila. (an-tee bee-net jah-mee-lah; You are a pretty girl.) ✓ ‘anta al-walad al-kabiir. (an-tah al-wah-lad al- kah-beer; You are the big boy.) ✓ hunna ‘an-nisaa’ al-laTiifaat. (hoo-nah ah-nee- sah ah-lah-tee-fat; They are the nice women.) ✓ hunna nisaa’ laTiifaat. (hoo-nah nee-sah lah-tee- fat; They are nice women.) ✓ huwa rajul qawiiy. (hoo-wah rah-jool qah-wee; He is a strong man.) ✓ huwa ar-rajul al-qawiiy. (hoo-wah ah-rah-jool al- qah-wee; He is the strong man.)

Creating negative “to be” sentences Although Arabic doesn’t have a “to be” regular verb to create “I am” or “you are” phrases, it does have a verb you use to say “I am not” or “you are not.” This special irregular verb laysa (lay-sah) creates negative “to be” sentences. Table 2-6 shows laysa conjugated using all the personal pronouns.

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Table 2-6 The Present Tense of the Verb laysa (Not To Be) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa lastu ah-nah las-too I am not ‘anta lasta an-tah las-tah You are not (MS) ‘anti lasti an-tee las-tee You are not (FS) huwa laysa hoo-wah lay-sah He is not hiya laysat hee-yah lay-sat She is not naHnu lasnaa nah-noo las-nah We are not ‘antum lastum an-toom las-toom You are not (MP) ‘antunna lastunna an-too-nah las- You are not (FP) too-nah hum laysuu hoom lay-soo They are not (MP) hunna lasna hoo-nah las-nah They are not (FP) antumaa lastu- an-too-mah las- You are not (dual/ maa too-mah MP/FP) humaa laysaa hoo-mah lay-sah They are not (dual/MP) humaa laysataa hoo-mah lay- They are not sah-tah (dual/FP)

Following are some examples of negative “to be” sentences using the verb laysa:

✓ ‘anaa lastu Taalib. (ah-nah las-too tah-leeb; I am not a student.) ✓ ‘anta lasta mariiD. (an-tah las-tah mah-reed; You are not sick.) (M) ✓ naHnu lasnaa fii al-madrasa. (nah-noo las-nah fee al-mad-rah-sah; We are not in the school.) ✓ al-bint aT-Tawiila laysat Da’iifa. (al-bee-net ah- tah-wee-lah lay-sat dah-ee-fah; The tall girl is not weak.)

06_225233-ch02.indd 31 1/30/09 11:40:18 PM 32 Arabic Phrases For Dummies “To be” in the past tense Arabic’s verb for “was/were” (in other words, “to be” in the past tense) is kaana (kah-nah; was/were). Similar to the negative form of “to be,” the past form is an irregular verb form conjugated using all the personal pronouns. See Table 2-7.

Table 2-7 The Past Tense of the Verb kaana (Was/Were) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa kuntu ah-nah koon-too I was ‘anta kunta an-tah koon-tah You were (MS) ‘anti kunti an-tee koon-tee You were (FS) huwa kaana hoo-wah kah-nah He was hiya kaanat hee-yah kah-nat She was naHnu kunnaa nah-noo koo-nah We were ‘antum kuntum an-toom You were (MP) koon-toom ‘antunna kuntunna an-too-nah You were (FP) koon-too-nah hum kaanuu hoom kah-noo They were (MP) hunna kunna hoo-nah koo-nah They were (FP) antumaa kuntumaa an-too-mah koon- You were (dual/ too-mah MP/FP) humaa kaanaa hoo-mah kah-nah They were (dual/MP) humaa kaanataa hoo-mah kah- They were nah-tah (dual/FP)

Here are some sentences featuring kaana:

✓ ‘anaa kuntu mariiD. (ah-nah koon-too mah-reed; I was sick.) ✓ ‘anta kunta fii al-maktaba. (an-tah koon-tah fee al-mak-tah-bah; You were in the library.)

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✓ hiya kaanat qariiba min al-manzil. (hee-yah kah-nat qah-ree-bah meen al-man-zeel; She was close to the house.) ✓ naHnu kunnaa fii al-masbaH. (nah-noo koo-nah fee al-mas-bah; We were in the swimming pool.) ✓ al-‘imra’a wa ar-rajul kaanaa fii al-Hubb. (al- eem-rah-ah wah ah-rah-jool kah-nah fee al-hoob; The woman and the man were in love.)

Working with Verbs Verb tenses in Arabic are fairly straightforward. Basically, you need to be concerned with only two proper verb forms: the past and the present. A future verb tense exists, but it’s a derivative of the present tense that you achieve by attaching a prefix to the present tense of the verb.

Digging up the past tense The structural form of the past tense is one of the eas- iest grammatical structures in the Arabic language. First, you refer to all regular verbs in the past tense using the huwa (hoo-wah; he) personal pronoun. Second, the overwhelming majority of verbs in huwa form in the past tense have three consonants that are accompanied by the same vowel: the fatHa (feht-hah). The fatHa creates the “ah” sound.

For example, the verb “wrote” in the past tense is kataba (kah-tah-bah); its three consonants are “k,” “t,” and “b.” Here are some common verbs you may use while speaking Arabic:

✓ ‘akala (ah-kah-lah; ate) ✓ fa’ala (fah-ah-lah; did) ✓ ra’a (rah-ah; saw)

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Table 2-8 shows the verb kataba (kah-tah-bah; wrote) conjugated using all the personal pronouns. Note that the first part of the verb remains constant; only its suffix changes depending on the personal pronoun used.

Table 2-8 The Past Tense of the Verb kataba (To Write) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa katabtu ah-nah kah-tab-too I wrote ‘anta katabta an-tah kah-tab-tah You wrote (MS) ‘anti katabtii an-tee kah-tab-tee You wrote (FS) huwa kataba hoo-wah kah-tah- He wrote bah hiya katabat hee-yah kah-tah- She wrote bat naHnu katabnaa nah-noo kah-tab- We wrote nah ‘antum katabtum an-toom kah-tab- You wrote (MP) toom ‘antunna an-too-nah kah- You wrote (FP) katabtunna tab-too-nah hum katabuu hoom kah-tah-boo They wrote (MP) hunna katabna hoo-nah kah-tab- They wrote (FP) nah antumaa an-too-mah kah- You wrote (dual/ katabtumaa tab-too-mah MP/FP) humaa katabaa hoo-mah kah-tah- They wrote bah (dual/MP) humaa katabataa hoo-mah kah-tah- They wrote bah-tah (dual/FP)

Every personal pronoun has a corresponding suffix used to conjugate and identify the verb form in its specific tense. Table 2-9 outlines these specific suffixes.

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Table 2-9 Personal Pronoun Suffixes for Verbs in the Past Tense Arabic Pronunciation Translation Verb Pronoun Suffix ‘anaa ah-nah I/me -tu ‘anta an-tah you (MS) -ta ‘anti an-tee you (FS) -tii huwa hoo-wah he/it -a hiya hee-yah she/it -at naHnu nah-noo we -naa ‘antum an-toom you (MP) -tum ‘antunna an-too-nah you (FP) tunna hum hoom they (MP) -uu hunna hoo-nah they (FP) -na ‘antumaa an-too-mah you (dual) tumaaa humaa hoo-mah they (M/dual) -aa humaa hoo-mah they (F/dual) -ataa

Anytime you come across a regular verb you want to conjugate in the past tense, use these verb suffixes with the corresponding personal pronouns.

Here are some simple sentences that combine nouns, adjectives, and verbs in the past tense:

✓ ‘al-walad dhahaba ‘ilaa al-madrasa. (al-wah-lad zah-hah-bah ee-lah al-mad-rah-sah; The boy went to the school.) ✓ ‘akalnaa Ta’aam ladhiidh. (ah-kal-nah tah-am lah-zeez; We ate delicious food.) ✓ dhahaba ar-rajul ‘ilaa al-jaami’a fii as-sayaara. (zah-hah-bah ah-rah-jool ee-lah al-jah-mee-ah fee ah-sah-yah-rah; The man went to the school in the car.)

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Note that some regular verbs have more than three consonants, such as:

✓ tafarraja (tah-fah-rah-jah; watched) ✓ takallama (tah-kah-lah-mah; spoke)

To conjugate them, you keep the first part of the word constant and change only the last part of the word using the corresponding suffixes to match the personal pronouns.

Examining the present tense Conjugating verbs in the present tense is a bit trick- ier. Instead of changing only the ending of the verb, you must also alter its beginning.

To illustrate the difference between past and present tense, Table 2-10 conjugates the verb kataba (wrote) as yaktubu (yak-too-boo; to write).

Table 2-10 The Present Tense of the Verb yaktubu (To Write) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa ‘aktubu ah-nah ak-too-boo I am writing ‘anta taktubu an-tah tak-too-boo You are writing (MS) ‘anti taktubiina an-tee tak-too- You are bee-nah writing (FS) huwa yaktubu hoo-wah yak-too-boo He is writing hiya taktubu hee-yah tak-too-boo She is writing naHnu naktubu nah-noo nak-too-boo We are writing ‘antum taktubuuna an-toom tak-too- You are boo-nah writing (MP)

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Form Pronunciation Translation ‘antunna taktubna an-too-nah tak- You are toob-nah writing (FP) hum yaktubuuna hoom yak-too- They are boo-nah writing (MP) hunna yaktubna hoo-nah yak- They are toob-nah writing (FP) antumaa an-too-mah tak-too- You are taktubaani bah-nee writing (dual/ MP/FP) humaa yaktubaani hoo-mah yak-too- They are writ- bah-nee ing (dual/MP) humaa taktubaani hoo-mah tak-too- They are writ- bah-nee ing (dual/FP)

As you can see, you need to be familiar with both the prefixes and suffixes to conjugate verbs in the present tense. Table 2-11 includes every personal pronoun with its corresponding prefix and suffix for the present tense.

Table 2-11 Personal Pronoun Prefixes and Suffixes for Verbs in the Present Tense Arabic Pronunciation Translation Verb Verb Pronoun Prefix Suffix ‘anaa ah-nah I/me ‘a- -u ‘anta an-tah you (MS) ta- -u ‘anti an-tee you (FS) ta- -iina huwa hoo-wah he/it ya- -u hiya hee-yah she/it ta- -u (continued)

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Table 2-11 (continued) Arabic Pronunciation Translation Verb Verb Pronoun Prefix Suffix naHnu nah-noo we na- -u ‘antum an-toom you (MP) ta- -uuna ‘antunna an-too-nah you (FP) ta- -na hum hoom they (MP) ya- -uuna hunna hoo-nah they (FP) ya- -na ‘antumaa an-too-mah you (dual) ta- -aani humaa hoo-mah they (M/ ya- -aani dual) humaa hoo-mah they (F/dual) ta- -aani

Aside from prefixes and suffixes, another major difference between the past and present tenses in Arabic is that every verb in the present tense has a dominant vowel that’s unique and distinctive. For example, the dominant vowel in yaktubu is a damma (dah-mah; “ooh” sound). However, in the verb yaf’alu (yaf-ah- loo; to do), the dominant vowel is the fatHa (feht-hah; “ah” sound). This means that when you conjugate the verb saf’alu using the personal pronoun ‘anaa, you say ‘anaa ‘af’alu and not ‘anaa ‘af’ulu. For complete coverage of Arabic vowels (damma, fatHa, and kasra), check out Chapter 1.

The dominant vowel is always the middle vowel. Unfortunately, there’s no hard rule you can use to determine which dominant vowel is associated with each verb. The best way to identify the dominant vowel is to look up the verb in the qaamuus (qah- moos; dictionary).

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In this list, I divide up some of the most common Arabic verbs according to their dominant vowels:

damma

✓ yaktubu (yak-too-boo; to write) ✓ yadrusu (yad-roo-soo; to study) ✓ ya’kulu (yah-koo-loo; to eat) ✓ yaskunu (yas-koo-noo; to live)

fatHa

✓ yaf’alu (yaf-ah-loo; to do) ✓ yaqra’u (yak-rah-oo; to read) ✓ yadhhabu (yaz-hah-boo; to go) ✓ yaftaHu (yaf-tah-hoo; to open)

kasra

✓ yarji’u (yar-jee-oo; to return) ✓ ya’rifu (yah-ree-foo; to know)

When you conjugate a verb in the present tense, you must do two things:

1. Identify the dominant vowel that will be used to conjugate the verb using all personal pronouns. 2. Isolate the prefix and suffix that correspond to the appropriate personal pronoun.

Peeking into the future tense You achieve the future tense by adding the prefix sa- to the existing present tense form of the verb. For example, yaktubu means “to write.” Add the prefix sa- to yaktubu and you get sayaktubu, which means “he will write.” Table 2-12 shows how to conjugate this verb.

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Table 2-12 The Future Tense of the Verb sayaktubu (To Write) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa sa’aktubu ah-nah sah-ak-too- I will write boo ‘anta sataktubu an-tah sah-tak-too- You will boo write (MS) ‘anti sataktubiina an-tee sah-tak-too- You will bee-nah write (FS) huwa sayaktubu hoo-wah sah-yak- He will write too-boo hiya sataktubu hee-yah sah-tak- She will write too-boo naHnu sanaktubu nah-noo sah-nak- We will write too-boo ‘antum sataktubuuna an-toom sah-tak- You will too-boo-nah write (MP) ‘antunna sataktubna an-too-nah sah-tak- You will write toob-nah (FP) hum sayaktubuuna hoom sah-yak- They will too-boo-nah write (MP) hunna sayaktubna hoo-nah sah-yak- They will toob-nah write (FP) antumaa an-too-mah sah- You will write sataktubaani tak-too-bah-nee (dual/MP/FP) humaa sayaktubaani hoo-mah sah-yak- They will write too-bah-nee (dual/MP) humaa sataktubaani hoo-mah sah-tak- They will write too-bah-nee (dual/FP)

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In This Chapter ▶ Counting to 100 ▶ Telling time ▶ Counting the days ▶ Spending money

n this chapter, I introduce you to the basics of Icounting in Arabic so you can talk about time, days, money, and more.

Talking Numbers Arabic ‘arqaam (ar-qahm; numbers) are part of one of the earliest traditions of number notation. But even though the Western world’s number system is sometimes referred to as “Arabic numerals,” actual Arabic ‘arqaam are written differently.

You read Arabic numbers from left to right. That’s right! Even though you read and write Arabic from right to left, you read and write Arabic numbers from left to right!

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Table 3-1 lays out the Arabic ‘arqaam from 0 to 10.

Table 3-1 Arabic Numerals 0–10 Arabic Pronunciation Translation Sifr seh-fer 0 waaHid wah-eed 1 ‘ithnayn eeth-nah-yen 2 thalaatha thah-lah-thah 3 ‘arba’a ah-reh-bah-ah 4 khamsa khah-meh-sah 5 sitta see-tah 6 sab’a sah-beh-ah 7 thamaaniya thah-mah-nee-yah 8 tis’a tee-seh-ah 9 ‘ashra ah-she-rah 10

You get the ‘arqaam from ‘iHdaa ‘ashar (11) to tis’ata ‘ashar (19) by combining a part of ‘ashra (10) — specifically ‘ashar (tenth) — with part of the singular number. In the case of the ‘arqaam from thalaathata ‘ashar (13) through tis’ata ‘ashar (19), all you do is add the suffix -ta to the regular number and add the derivative form ‘ashar.

Table 3-2 shows the ‘arqaam in increments of 10 from 20 to 100.

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Table 3-2 Arabic Numerals 20–100 Arabic Pronunciation Translation ‘ishriin ee-sheh-reen 20 thalaathiin thah-lah-theen 30 ‘arba’iin ah-reh-bah-een 40 khamsiin khah-meh-seen 50 sittiin see-teen 60 sab’iin sah-beh-een 70 thamaaniin thah-mah-neen 80 Tis’iin tee-seh-een 90 Mi’a mee-ah 100

In English, you add the suffix -ty to get thirty, forty, and so on. In Arabic, the suffix -iin plays that role, as in ‘arba’iin (40) or khamsiin (50).

Discovering Ordinal Numbers Ordinal numbers are used to order things in a first- second-third kind of format. In Arabic, ordinal numbers are gender-defined, so you need to be familiar with both the masculine and feminine ordinal forms, which I present in Table 3-3.

07_225233-ch03.indd 43 1/30/09 11:40:38 PM 44 Arabic Phrases For Dummies twelfth eleventh tenth ninth eighth seventh sixth fifth fourth third second first Translation thah-nee-yah ash-rah hah-dee-yah ash-rah ah-shee-rah tah-see-ah thah-meen-ah sah-bee-ah sah-dee-sah khah-mee-sah rah-bee-hah thah-lee-thah thah-nee-yah ooh-laah Pronunciation Ordinal Numbers thaaniya ‘ashra Haadia ‘ashra ‘aashira taasi’a thaamina saabi’a saadisa khaamisa raabi’a thaalitha thaaniya ‘uulaa thah-nee ah-shar hah-dee ah-shar ah-sheer tah-see thah-meen sah-bee sah-dees khah-mees rah-bee thah-leeth thah-nee ah-wall thaanii ‘ashar Haadi ‘ashar ‘aashir taasi’ thaamin saabi’ saadis khaamis raabi’ thaalith thaanii ‘awwal Table 3-3 Ordinal (M) Pronunciation Ordinal (F)

07_225233-ch03.indd 44 1/30/09 11:40:38 PM Chapter 3: Numerical Gumbo: Counting of All Kinds 45 Telling Time in Arabic If you want to ask someone for the time, you ask

kam as-saa’a? (kam ah-sah-ah; What time is it?)

If someone asks you this question, answer as-saa’a followed by the ordinal of the hour. So you would say, for instance, “It’s the eleventh hour” as opposed to saying “It’s 11 o’clock.” Because as-saa’a is a feminine noun, you use the feminine form of the ordinal numbers, which are listed in Table 3-4.

as-saa’a al-Haadiya ‘ashra. (ah-sah-ah al-hah-dee- yah ah-shrah; It’s 11:00.)

Table 3-4 Arabic Ordinals for Telling Time Arabic Pronunciation Translation waaHida wah-hee-dah first (F) thaaniya thah-nee-yah second (F) thaalitha thah-lee-thah third (F) raabi’a rah-bee-ah fourth (F) khaamisa khah-mee-sah fifth (F) saadisa sah-dee-sah sixth (F) saabi’a sah-bee-ah seventh (F) thaamina thah-mee-nah eighth (F) taasi’a tah-see-ah ninth (F) ‘aashira ah-shee-rah tenth (F) Haadiya ‘ashra hah-dee-yah ah-shrah eleventh (F) thaaniya ‘ashra thah-nee-yah ah-shrah twelfth (F)

You need to use the definite prefix article al- with the ordinals because you’re referring to a specific hour and not just any hour.

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Following are some additional key words related to telling time in Arabic:

✓ saa’a (sah-ah; hour) ✓ daqiiqa (da-kee-qah; minute) ✓ thaaniya (thah-nee-yah; second) ✓ ba’da (bah-dah; after) ✓ qabla (kab-lah; before) ✓ al-yawm (al-yah-oum; today) ✓ al-ghad (al-ghah-d; tomorrow) ✓ al-baariHa (al-bah-ree-hah; yesterday) ✓ ba’da al-ghad (bah-dah al-ghah-d; the day after tomorrow) ✓ qabla al-baariHa (kab-lah al-bah-ree-hah; the day before yesterday)

Specifying the time of day Because Arabic uses neither the a.m./p.m. system nor the 24-hour military clock when giving the time, you need to specify the time of day by actually saying what part of the day it is.

Here are the different times of day you’re likely to use:

✓ aS-SabaaH (ah-sah-bah; morning, or sunrise to 11:59 a.m.) ✓ aDH-DHuhr (ah-zoo-her; noon, or 12:00 p.m.) ✓ ba’da aDH-DHuhr (bah-dah ah-zoo-her; afternoon, or 12:01 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.) ✓ al-‘asr (al-ah-ser; late afternoon, or 4:01 p.m. to sunset) ✓ al-masaa’ (al-mah-sah; evening, or sunset to two hours after sunset) ✓ al-layl (ah-lah-yel; night)

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For example, if the time is 2:00 p.m., then you attach ba’da aDH-DHuhr to the proper ordinal. If sunset is at 6:00 p.m. and you want to say the time’s 7:00 p.m., then you use al-masaa’ and the ordinal because al-masaa’ applies to the two-hour period right after sunset; if sunset is at 6:00 p.m. and you want to say the time’s 9:00 p.m., then you use al-layl and the ordinal because 9:00 p.m. falls outside the scope of the evening convention.

The convention used to specify the part of the day is fairly straightforward:

as-saa’a + ordinal number + fii (fee; in) + part of the day

The following are some examples to better illustrate responses to the question kam as-saa’a?:

✓ as-saa’a al-waaHida fii ba’da aDH-DHuhr. (ah- sah-ah al-wah-hee-dah fee bah-dah ah-zoo-her; It’s 1:00 in the afternoon.) ✓ as-saa’a al-khaamisa fii al-‘asr. (ah-sah-ah al-kah- mee-sah fee al-ah-ser; It’s 5:00 in the late afternoon.) ✓ as-saa’a al-Haadiya ‘ashra fii aS-SabaaH. (ah- sah-ah al-hah-dee-yah ah-shrah fee ah-sah-bah; It’s 11:00 in the morning.) ✓ as-saa’a at-taasi’a fii al-layl. (ah-sah-ah ah-tah- see-ah fee ah-lah-yel; It’s 9:00 in [at] night.) ✓ as-saa’a as-saabi’a fii al-masaa’. (ah-sah-ah ah- sah-bee-ah fee al-mah-sah; It’s 7:00 in the evening.)

Specifying minutes You can specify minutes in two different ways: noting the fractions of the hour, such as a half, a quarter, and a third, or actually spelling out the minutes.

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When using the fraction method of telling minutes, use the following structure:

as-saa’a + ordinal number + wa (wah; and) + fraction

So what you’re saying is “It’s the second hour and a half,” for example. In English transliteration, that’s the equivalent of “It’s half past two.”

The main fractions you use are:

✓ an-niSf (ah-nee-sef; half) ✓ ath-thuluth (ah-thoo-looth; third) ✓ ar-rubu’ (ah-roo-booh; quarter) ✓ ‘ashara (ah-sha-rah; tenth)

The following examples show you how to use the fraction method to specify minutes when telling time:

✓ as-saa’a ath-thaaniya wa ar-rubu’. (ah-sah-ah ah-thah-nee-yah wah ah-roo-booh; It’s quarter past two.) ✓ as-saa’a at-taasi’a wa an-niSf. (ah-sah-ah ah-tah- see-ah wah ah-nee-sef; It’s half past nine.) ✓ as-saa’a al-khaamisa wa ar-rubu’. (ah-sah-ah al-kah-mee-sah wah ah-roo-booh; It’s quarter past five.) ✓ as-saa’a al-Haadiya ‘ashra wa an-niSf. (ah-sah- ah al-hah-dee-yah ah-shrah wah ah-nee-sef; It’s half past eleven.)

If you want to say “It’s quarter of” or “It’s twenty of”, you need to use the preposition ‘ilaa (ee-lah), which means “of” or “to.” If you think of the preposition wa as adding to the hour, then think of ‘ilaa as subtract- ing from the hour.

Because ‘ilaa subtracts from the hour, you must add one hour to whatever hour you’re referring to. For example, if you want to say “It’s 5:45,” then you must say “It’s quarter of six.” Here are some examples that use ‘ilaa:

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✓ as-saa’a as-saadisa ‘ilaa ar-rubu’. (ah-sah-ah ah- sah-dee-sah ee-lah ah-roo-booh; It’s quarter to six, or 5:45.) ✓ as-saa’a al-waaHida ‘ilaa ath-thuluth. (ah-sah-ah al-wah-hee-dah ee-lah ah-thoo-looth; It’s twenty to one, or 12:40.)

If you want to express minutes as a fraction and specify which time of day (a.m. or p.m.), you simply add fii and the time of day:

✓ as-saa’a ath-thaamina wa ar-rubu’ fii aS- SabaaH. (ah-sah-ah ah-thah-mee-nah wah ah-roo- booh fee ah-sah-bah; It’s 8:15 in the morning.) ✓ as-saa’a al-khaamisa ‘ilaa ar-rubu’ fii al-’asr. (ah-sah-ah al-kah-mee-sah ee-lah ah-roo-booh fee al-ah-ser; It’s quarter to five in the late afternoon, or 4:45 p.m.)

You can also specify the minutes by actually spelling them out. Use the following format:

as-saa’a + ordinal/hours + wa + cardinal/minutes + daqiiqa

So as-saa’a al-khaamisa wa ‘khamsat daqiiqa (ah-sah- ah al-kah-mee-sah wah kam-sat dah-kee-qah) means “It’s 5:05.” Here are some other examples:

✓ as-saa’a al-waaHida wa ‘ishriin daqiiqa. (ah- sah-ah al-wah-hee-dah wah eesh-reen dah-kee- qah; It’s 1:20.) ✓ as-saa’a ath-thaamina wa khamsa wa ‘arba’iin daqiiqa fii aS-SabaaH. (ah-sah-ah ah-thah-mee- nah wah kam-sah wah ar-bah-een dah-kee-qah; It’s 8:45 in the morning.)

Referring to Days and Months The days of the ‘usbuu’ (ooh-seh-booh; week) are derived from Arabic numbers. So recognizing the roots of the words for days of the week is key:

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✓ al-‘aHad (al-ah-had; Sunday) ✓ al-‘ithnayn (al-eeth-nah-yen; Monday) ✓ ath-thulathaa’ (ah-thoo-lah-thah; Tuesday) ✓ al-‘arbi’aa’ (al-ah-reh-bee-ah; Wednesday) ✓ al-khamiis (al-khah-mees; Thursday) ✓ al-jumu’a (al-joo-moo-ah; Friday) ✓ as-sabt (ass-sah-bet; Saturday)

al-jumu’a gets its name from jumu’a, which means “to gather;” it’s the day when Muslims gather at the mosque and pray. Similarly, as- sabt is the day of rest, similar to the Jewish Sabbath.

Arabs use different types of calendars to note the pas- sage of time, including these two:

✓ The Gregorian calendar is basically the same calendar as the one used throughout the Western world. ✓ The Islamic calendar is based on the lunar cycle and has different names for the months than its Western counterpart. It is based entirely on the moon’s rotations and is used to identify specific religious holidays, such as the end and beginning of the holy month of Ramadan, in which Muslims fast from the break of dawn until dusk.

Tables 3-5 and 3-6 show the ash-hur (ah-shuh-hur; months) in the Gregorian and Islamic calendars.

Table 3-5 Gregorian Calendar Arabic Pronunciation Translation Yanaayir yah-nah-yeer January Fibraayir feeb-rah-yeer February Maaris mah-rees March ‘abriil ah-beh-reel April

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Arabic Pronunciation Translation Maayuu mah-yoo May Yunyu yoo-neh-yoo June Yulyu yoo-leh-yoo July ‘aghusTus ah-goo-seh-toos August Sibtambar seeb-tam-bar September ‘uktuubar oo-key-too-bar October Nufambar noo-fahm-bar November Disambar dee-sahm-bar December

The Arabic names of the Gregorian months are similar to the names in English. However, the names of the Islamic calendar are quite different.

Table 3-6 Islamic Calendar Arabic Pronunciation muHarram moo-hah-ram Safar sah-far rabii’ al-awwal rah-bee al-ah-wall rabii’ ath-thaanii rah-bee ah-thah-nee jumaada al-awwal joo-mah-dah al-ah-wall jumaada ath-thaanii joo-mah-dah ah-thah-nee rajab rah-jab sha’baan sha-huh-ban ramaDaan rah-mah-dan shawwaal shah-wuh-al dhuu al-qaa’ida zoo al-qah-ee-dah dhuu al-Hijja zoo al-hee-jah

Because the Islamic calendar is based on the lunar cycle, the months don’t overlap with the Gregorian

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calendar, making it difficult to match the months with the Gregorian ones.

To specify a date, such as December fifth, use the ordinal number. Because the terms for months are masculine, you must use masculine ordinals to identify specific dates. For example, you say disambar al-khaamis (dee- sam-bar al-kah-mees; December fifth) or yanaayir ath- thaamin (yah-nah-yeer ah-thah-meen; January eighth). In addition, because the ordinal acts as a possessive adjective, you must include the definite prefix al-.

Money, Money, Money al-maal (al-mal; money) is an essential part of everyday life. Here are a few words to get you started:

✓ fuluus (foo-loos; cash/physical currency) ✓ nuquud (noo-kood; money/coins) ✓ naqd (nah-ked; coin) ✓ ‘awraaq (aw-rak; money/paper currencies) ✓ biTaaqa al-‘i’timaad (bee-tah-qah al-eeh-tee-mad; credit card) ✓ biTaaqaat al-‘i’timaad (bee-tah-kat al-eeh-tee- mad; credit cards) ✓ biTaaqa al-‘istilaaf (bee-tah-qah al-ees-tee-laf; debit card) ✓ shiik (sheek; check) ✓ shiikaat (shee-kat; checks) ✓ maSraf (mas-raf; bank) ✓ Hisaab maSrafii (hee-sab mas-rah-fee; bank account)

Opening a bank account One of the most important things you may do in a maSraf is open a Hisaab maSrafii. Here are two types of Husub (hoo-soob; accounts) you may inquire about:

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✓ Hisaab maSrafii ‘aadii (hee-sab mas-rah-fee ah-dee; checking account) ✓ Hisaab maSrafii li at-tawfiir (hee-sab mas-rah- fee lee ah-taw-feer; savings account)

You need to talk to the ‘amiin al-maSraf (ah-meen al- mas-raf; bank teller) (M) or the ‘amiina al-masraf (ah- mee-nah al-mas-raf; bank teller) (F) to open your Hisaab:

✓ ‘uriidu ‘an ‘aftaHa Hisaab maSrafii. (oo-ree-doo an af-tah-hah hee-sab mas-rah-fee. I would like to open a bank account.) ✓ ‘ay ‘anwaa’ min al-Husub al-maSrafiiyya ‘indakum? (ay an-wah meen al-hoo-soob al-mas-rah- fee-yah een-dah-koom? What types of bank accounts do you have?) ✓ maa huwa al-farq bayna al-Hisaab al-maSrafii al-’aadii wa al-Hisaab al-maSrafii li aT-Tulaab? (mah hoo-wah al-fah-rek bay-nah al-hee-sab al- mas-rah-fee al-ah-dee wah al-hee-sab al-mas-rah- fee lee ah-too-lab? What’s the difference between a regular checking account and a student checking account?)

Words to Know yaftaHu yaf-tah-hoo to open naw’ nah-weh type ‘anwaa’ an-wah types farq fah-rek difference ‘arbuun ar-boon deposit faa’ida fah-ee-dah interest rate fii al-mi’a fee al-mee-ah percentage

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The two basic transactions you’ll probably make are:

✓ wadii’a (wah-dee-ah; deposit) ✓ ‘insiHaab (een-see-hab; withdrawal)

Using the ATM Most ATMs accept all sorts of cards, whether they’re issued by the same maSraf that operates the ATM terminal or not. However, some ATMs charge you a ‘ujra (ooj-rah; fee) if you use a card not issued by a recognized maSraf. In addition, most ATMs accept both biTaaqaat al-‘i’timaad (credit cards) and biTaaqaat al-‘istilaaf (debit cards). Note: Another word for “credit card” is biTaaqa diiniiya (bee-tah-qah dee- nee-yah). Here are some ATM-related commands and phrases:

✓ ‘udkhul al-biTaaqa (ood-kool al-bee-tah-qah; Insert the card.) ✓ ‘udkhul ar-raqm as-siriiy. (ood-kool ah-rah-kem ah-see-ree; Enter the PIN/secret number.) ✓ ‘insiHaab al-fuluus (een-see-hab al-foo-loos; cash withdrawal) ✓ ‘udkhul al-kammiyya. (ood-kool al-kah-mee-yah; Enter the amount.) ✓ ‘akkid al-kammiyya. (ah-keed al-kah-mee-yah; Confirm the amount.) ✓ khudh al-fuluus. (kooz al-foo-loos; Take the cash.) ✓ hal turiidu ‘iiSaala? (hal too-ree-doo ee-sah-lah; Do you want a receipt?) ✓ khudh al-‘iiSaala. (kooz al-ee-sah-lah; Take the receipt.) ✓ Haqqiq ar-raSiid. (hah-keek ah-rah-seed; Check the balance.) ✓ Hawwil al-amwaal. (hah-weel al-am-wal; Transfer the money.) ✓ ‘azil al-biTaaqa min faDlik. (ah-zeel al-bee-tah- qah meen fad-leek; Please remove the card.)

07_225233-ch03.indd 54 1/30/09 11:40:38 PM Chapter 3: Numerical Gumbo: Counting of All Kinds 55 Exchanging currency If you’re traveling to a foreign dawla (dah-ou-lah; country), you won’t get very far if you don’t have the right ‘umla mutadaawala (oom-lah moo-tah-dah- wah-lah; currency), or ‘umla (oom-lah) for short. (Of course, you could rely on shiikat al-musaafir [shee- kat al-moo-sah-feer; traveler’s checks], but you may find that carrying ‘umla is more convenient.) You can exchange ‘umla at a number of different places, at a maSraf or a maktab as-sarf (mak-tab ah-sah-ref; exchange desk).

The following list of questions can help you facilitate this exchange at the maSraf:

✓ ‘ayna maktab as-sarf? (ay-nah mak-tab ah-sah- ref; Where is the exchange desk?) ✓ mataa yaHull maktab as-sarf? (mah-tah yah-hool mak-tab ah-sah-ref; When does the exchange desk open?) ✓ maa huwa mu’addal as-sarf al-yawm? (mah hoo-wah moo-ah-dal ah-sah-ref al-yah-oum; What is today’s exchange rate?) ✓ hal mu’addal as-sarf sayakuun ‘aHsan ghadan? (hal moo-ah-dal ah-sah-ref sah-yah-koon ah-san ghah-dan; Will the exchange rate be better tomorrow?) ✓ hal hunaaka ‘ujra li tasriif al-fuluus? (hal hoo- nah-kah ooj-rah lee tas-reef al-foo-loos; Is there a fee for exchanging money?) ✓ ‘uriidu ‘an ‘aSrifa duularaat ‘ilaa daraahim. (oo-ree-doo an as-ree-fah doo-lah-rat ee-lah dah- rah-heem; I would like to exchange dollars into dirhams.) ✓ kam min diinaar li mi’at duulaar? (kam meen dee-nar lee mee-at doo-lar; How many dinars for 100 dollars?)

Here are some answers you may hear from the ‘amiin maktab as-sarf (ah-meen mak-tab ah-sah-ref; exchange desk representative):

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✓ na’am, nusarrif duulaaraat ‘ilaa daraahim. (nah-am, noo-sah-reef doo-lah-rat ee-lah dah-rah- heem; Yes, we exchange dollars into dirhams.) ✓ mu’addal as-sarf al-yawm mithla mu’addal as- sarf al-‘ams. (moo-ah-dal ah-sah-ref al-yah-oum meet-lah moo-ah-dal ah-sah-ref al-ah-mes; Today’s exchange rate is the same as yesterday’s exchange rate.) ✓ naHnu naqbal duulaaraat faqat. (nah-noo nak- bal doo-lah-rat fah-kat; We only accept dollars.) ✓ naHnu naqbal nuquud faqat. (nah-noo nak-bal noo-kood fah-kat; We only accept cash.) ✓ mi’at duulaar tusaawii ‘alf riyaal. (mee-at doo- lar too-sah-wee ah-lef ree-yal; One hundred dollars equals one thousand riyals.) ✓ hunaaka ‘ujra ‘ashrat duulaar li kul maHDar. (hoo-nah-kah ooj-ra ash-rat doo-lar lee kool mahdar; There is a ten dollar fee for every transaction.)

07_225233-ch03.indd 56 1/30/09 11:40:38 PM Chapter 4 Making New Friends and Enjoying Small Talk

In This Chapter ▶ Handling pleasantries ▶ Using common introductions ▶ Referring to countries and nationalities ▶ Asking questions ▶ Talking about yourself

n this chapter, I show you how to greet people in IArabic, how to respond to basic greetings, and how to interact with native Arabic speakers. You find out when it’s appropriate to use formal and informal terms, how to make small talk, and how to introduce yourself. HaDHan sa’iidan! (had-dan sa-ee-dan; Good luck!)

Greetings! In Arabic, the greeting you use depends on whom you’re addressing. If you’re greeting someone you don’t know for the very first time, you must use the more formal greetings. If you’re greeting an old family friend or a colleague you know well, feel free to use the more informal forms of greeting. If you’re not sure which form to use, you’re better off going formal.

08_225233-ch04.indd 57 1/30/09 11:40:56 PM 58 Arabic Phrases For Dummies You say hello . . . The formal way of greeting someone in Arabic is ‘as- salaamu ‘alaykum (ass-sa-laam-ou a-lai-koum). Even though it translates into English as “hello,” it literally means “May peace be upon you.”

Using ‘as-salaamu ‘alaykum is appropriate when

✓ You’re greeting a potential business partner. ✓ You’re at a formal event, dinner, or gala. ✓ You’re meeting someone for the first time.

The most common reply is wa ‘alaykum ‘as-salaam (wa a-lai-koum ass-sa-laam; and upon you peace).

The phrase ‘ahlan wa sahlan (ahel-an wah sah-lan) is a very informal way of greeting a person or group of people. Translated into English, it resembles the more informal “hi” as opposed to “hello.” When someone says ‘ahlan wa sahlan, you should also reply ‘ahlan wa sahlan.

Using ‘ahlan wa sahlan is appropriate when

✓ You’re greeting an old friend. ✓ You’re greeting a family member. ✓ You’re greeting someone at an informal gather- ing, such as a family lunch.

Simply saying ‘ahlan! is the most informal way of greeting someone. Use it only with people you’re very comfortable with.

. . . I say goodbye Saying goodbye in Arabic doesn’t have formal or informal options. Here are the most common ways of saying goodbye in Arabic:

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✓ ma’a as-salaama (ma-a ass-sa-laa-ma; go with peace, or goodbye) ✓ ‘ilaa al-liqaa’ (ee-laa al-li-kaa; until next time) ✓ ‘ilaa al-ghad (ee-laa al-gad; see you tomorrow)

How are you doing? The most common way to ask someone how he’s doing is kayf al-Haal? (ka-yef al-haal), which literally means “How is the health?”

kayf al-Haal is gender-neutral, but you can also use gender-defined greeting terms, which are derivatives of the kayf al-Haal phrase:

✓ When addressing a man, use kayf Haaluka (ka- yef haa-lou-ka). ✓ When addressing a woman, use kayf Haaluki (ka-yef haa-lou-kee).

kayf Haalak? (ka-yef haa-lak; How is your health?) is a bit more personal and informal.

I’m doing well! When someone asks you how you’re doing, if you’re doing just fine, the typical response is al-Hamdu li- llah (al-ham-dou lee-lah). It literally means “Praise to God,” but in this context, it translates to “I’m doing well.” Typically, after you say al-Hamdu li-llah, you follow up by saying shukran (shouk-ran; thank you).

After you say al-Hamdu li-llah, shukran, you need to ask the other person how he or she is doing:

✓ If you’re speaking with a man, you say wa ‘anta kayf al-Haal (wa an-ta ka-yef al-haal; And you, how are you?). ✓ If you’re speaking with a woman, you say wa ‘anti kayf al-Haal (wa an-tee ka-yef al-haal; And you, how are you?).

08_225233-ch04.indd 59 1/30/09 11:40:56 PM 60 Arabic Phrases For Dummies Making Introductions This section explains how to ask people for their names and how to share your name using the possessive form.

Asking “What’s your name?” You need to know only two words: ‘ism (name) and maa (what). If you’re addressing a man, you ask maa ‘ismuka? (maa ees-moo-ka; What’s your name?) (M). When addressing a woman, you ask maa ‘ismuki? (maa ees-moo-kee; What’s your name?) (F).

If you say maa ‘ismuk without using the suffixes –a or –i at the end of ‘ismuk, you’re actually using a gender-neutral form, which is perfectly acceptable. You can address both men and women by saying maa ‘ismuk? (maa ees-mook; What’s your name?) (GN).

Responding with “My name is . . .” The possessive form is one of Arabic’s easi- est grammatical lessons: All you do is add the suffix –ii (pronounced ee) to the noun, and — voila! — you have the possessive form of the noun. To say “my name,” add –ii to ‘ism and get ‘ismii (ees-mee; my name). So to say “My name is Amine,” all you say is ‘ismii amiin.

When someone introduces himself or herself, a polite response is tasharrafnaa (tah-shah-raf-nah; It’s a pleasure to meet you). You can also say ‘ahlan wa sahlan (ahel-an wah sah-lan; Nice to meet you.), which is much more informal.

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Words to Know ‘ahlan wa ahel-an wa hi; or nice to meet sahlan sah-lan you, depending on the context al-Hamdu al-ham-dou I’m doing well li-llah lee-lah (Praise to God) ‘ism ee-ssam name ‘ismii ees-mee my name masaa’ ma-saa good evening al-khayr al-kha-yer tasbaH tas-bah good night ‘alaa khayr ‘a-la kha-yer ‘ilaa al-liqaa’ ee-laa al-li-qaa until next time

Talking about Countries and Nationalities When you meet someone for the first time, you may want to know what country he or she is from. Fortunately for English speakers, the Arabic names of many countries are similar to their names in English.

Asking “Where are you from?” You can use these two phrases to ask someone where they’re from:

✓ min ‘ayna ‘anta (min ay-na ann-ta) if you’re asking a man. ✓ min ‘ayna ‘anti (min ay-na ann-tee) if you’re asking a woman.

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If you want to ask if a man is from a certain place — for example, America — you say

hal ‘anta min ‘amriikaa? (hal ann-ta min am-ree- kaa; Are you from America?) (M)

If you’re speaking with a woman, you simply replace ‘anta with ‘anti.

Answering “I am from . . .” To say “I am from . . .,” you use the preposition min (from) and the personal pronoun ‘anaa (I/me). Therefore, “I’m from America” is ‘anaa min ‘amriikaa. It’s that simple!

Table 4-1 lists the names of various countries and corresponding nationalities in Arabic.

Table 4-1 Country Names and Nationalities in Arabic Country/Nationality Pronunciation Translation al-maghrib al-magh-rib Morocco maghribii magh-ree-bee Moroccan (M) maghribiiyya magh-ree-bee-ya Moroccan (F) al-jazaa’ir al-jah-zah-eer Algeria jazaa’irii ja-zaa-ee-ree Algerian (M) jazaa’iriiyya ja-zaa-ee-ree-ya Algerian (F) tuunis tuu-nis Tunisia tuunisii tuu-nee-see Tunisian (M) tuunisiiyya tuu-nee-see-ya Tunisian (F) miSr mee-sar Egypt miSrii mees-ree Egyptian (M) miSriiyya mees-ree-ya Egyptian (F) al-’iraaq al-i-raa-q Iraq

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Country/Nationality Pronunciation Translation ‘iraaqii ee-raa-qee Iraqi (M) ‘iraaqiiyya ee-raa-qee-ya Iraqi (F) as-sa’uudiiyya as-sa-uu-dee-ya Saudi Arabia sa’uudii sa-uu-dee Saudi (M) sa’uudiiyya sa-uu-dee-ya Saudi (F) ‘amriikaa am-ree-kaa America/USA ‘amriikii am-ree-kee American (M) ‘amriikiiyya am-ree-kee-ya American (F)

To tell someone “I am from Morocco,” you say ‘anaa min al-maghrib (ann-aa min al-magh-rib). Alternatively, you may also say ‘anaa maghribii (ann- aa magh-ree-bee; I am Moroccan) (M).

Asking Questions One of the best ways to start a conversation is to ask a su’aal (soo-aahl; question). To get you started, here are some key question words in Arabic:

✓ man? (meh-n; Who?) ✓ ‘ayna? (eh-yeh-nah; Where?) ✓ mataa? (mah-taah; When?) ✓ maa? (maah; What?) ✓ maadhaa? (maah-zaah; What?) (used with verbs) ✓ lii maadhaa? (lee maah-zaah; Why?) ✓ kayfa? (keh-yeh-fah; How?) ✓ bikam? (bee-kah-m; How much?) ✓ kam min? (kam meen; How many?)

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You may use these question words to ask more elabo- rate and detailed questions. Here are some examples:

✓ maa ‘ismuka? (maah ees-moo-kah; What’s your name?) (MS) ✓ maa ‘ismuki? (maah ees-moo-kee; What’s your name?) (FS) ✓ maa mihnatuka? (maah meeh-nah-too-kah; What do you do?; literally “What is your job?”) (MS) ✓ maa mihnatuki? (maah meeh-nah-too-kee; What do you do?; literally “What is your job?”) (FS) ✓ maadha taf’al? (maah-zaah tah-feh-al; What are you doing?) (MS) ✓ maadha taf’aliina? (maah-zaah tah-feh-alee-nah; What are you doing?) (FS) ✓ min ‘ayna ‘anta? (meh-n eh-yeh-nah ahn-tah; Where are you from?) (MS) ✓ min ‘ayna ‘anti? (meh-n eh-yeh-nah ahn-tee; Where are you from?) (FS) ✓ hal tuHibbu al-qiraa’a? (hal too-hee-buh al-kee- raa-ah; Do you like to read?) (MS) ✓ hal haadhaa kitaabuka? (hal hah-zah kee-tah- boo-kah; Is this your book?) ✓ ‘ayna maHaTTatu al-qiTaar? (eh-yeh-nah mah-hah- tah-too al-kee-taar; Where is the train station?) ✓ mataa satadhhab ‘ilaa al-maTaar? (mah-taah sa- taz-hab ee-laah al-mah-taar; When will she go to the airport?) ✓ ‘ayna ‘aHsan maT’am? (eh-yeh-nah ah-sah-n mah-tam; Where is the best restaurant?)

Notice that some of the questions above refer to either masculine or feminine subjects. When you ask a question in Arabic, you choose the gender of the subject by modifying the gender suffix of the noun in question. For example, kitaab (kee-tab) means “book,” but kitaabuka (kee-tah-boo-kah) means “your book” (M), and kitaabuki (kee-tah-boo-kee) means “your book” (F). So if you want to ask a man for his book, you use kitaabuka.

08_225233-ch04.indd 64 1/30/09 11:40:56 PM Chapter 4: Making New Friends 65 Talking about Yourself and Your Family One of the best ways to get acquainted with someone is by finding out more about his or her ‘usra (oos-rah; family). Table 4-2 lists some important members of the ‘usra who may come up in conversation.

Table 4-2 All in the Family Arabic Pronunciation Translation ‘ab ah-b father ‘um oo-m mother waalidayn wah-lee-day-en parents ‘ibn ee-ben son bint bee-net daughter ‘abnaa’ ah-ben-aah children zawj zah-weh-j husband zawja zah-weh-jah wife ‘akh ah-kh-eh brother ‘ukht oo-khe-t sister jadd jah-d grandfather jadda jah-dah grandmother Hafiid hah-feed grandson Hafiida hah-fee-dah granddaughter ‘amm ahm paternal uncle (father’s brother) ‘amma ah-mah paternal aunt (father’s sister) khaal kah-l maternal uncle (mother’s brother) khaala kah-lah maternal aunt (mother’s sister) (continued)

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Table 4-2 (continued) Arabic Pronunciation Translation zawj al-’amma zah-weh-j paternal aunt’s al-ah-mah husband zawjat al-’amm zah-weh-jaht al-ahm paternal uncle’s wife zawj al-khaala zah-weh-j maternal aunt’s al-kah-lah husband zawjat al-khaal zah-weh-jaht maternal uncle’s wife al-kah-l ‘ibn al-’amm ee-ben al-ahm male cousin from the father’s side bint al-’amm bee-net al-ahm female cousin from the father’s side ‘ibn al-khaal ee-ben al-kah-l male cousin from the mother’s side bint al-khaala bee-net al-kah-lah female cousin from the mother’s side ‘ahl az-zawj ahel az-zah-weh-j in-laws (M; collective) ‘ahl az-zawja ahel az-zah- in-laws (F; collective) weh-jah Hamou hah-mooh father-in-law Hamaat hah-maht mother-in-law silf see-lef brother-in-law silfa see-leh-fah sister-in-law rabboun rah-boon stepfather rabba rah-bah stepmother ‘akh min al-’ab ah-kh-eh min stepbrother from the al-ah-b father’s side ‘ukht min al-’ab oo-khe-t min stepsister from the al-ah-b father’s side ‘akh min ah-kh-eh min stepbrother from the al-’umm al-oo-m mother’s side ‘ukht min oo-khe-t min stepsister from the al-’umm al-oo-m mother’s side

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The ‘usra plays a very important role in Arab life, society, and culture, and the Arab ‘usra structure is very different than the Western family unit. The notion of the ‘usra is much more comprehensive and reinforced in the Arab world and the Middle East than it is in America or other Western countries. The family unit most prevalent in the West is the nuclear family — generally comprised of two parents and their children. But the ‘usra in the Arab world is an extended, close-knit family network made up of parents, children, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.

It’s not uncommon to find an Arab household in which children live not only with their parents but also with their aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents. In Arab culture, the idea of the immediate family extends to second- and even third-degree cousins! In addition, lineage is important, and the terms for family relatives are specifically designed to differentiate between cousins from the mother’s side (‘ibn al-khaal) and cousins from the father’s side (‘ibn al-’amm). Thus, if you’re talking to an Arab about his or her family, you can be sure that you’ll have a lot to talk about!

Talking about Work You can generally find out a lot about a person based on his or her mihna (meeh-nah; job). If you want to ask someone about his or her profession, you have two options:

✓ maa mihnatuka? (maah meeh-nah-too-kah; What is your job?; literally “What do you do?”) (M) ✓ maa mihnatuki? (maah meeh-nah-too-kee; What is your job?; literally “What do you do?”) (F) ✓ ‘ayna ta’mal? (eh-yeh-nah tah-mal; Where do you work?) (M) ✓ ‘ayna ta’maliina? (eh-yeh-nah tah-mah-lee-nah; Where do you work?) (F)

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Table 4-3 contains some important words relating to different occupations.

Table 4-3 Professions Arabic Pronunciation Translation maSrafii mah-srah-fee banker (M) SaHafii sah-hah-fee journalist (M) kaatib kah-teeb writer (M) mumathil moo-mah-theel actor (M) muhandis moo-han-dees architect (M) Tabiib tah-beeb doctor (M) fannaan fah-nan artist (M) mughannii moo-ghah-nee singer (M) muTarjim moo-tar-jeem translator (M) mumarriD moo-mah-reed nurse (M) muHaamii moo-hah-mee lawyer (M) Tabbaakh tah-bah-kh cook (M) taajir tah-jeer merchant (M) muHaasib moo-hah-seeb accountant (M) simsaar seem-sahr broker (M) Hallaaq hah-lahk barber (M) fallaaH fah-lah farmer (M) raaqiS rah-kees dancer (M) shurTii shoor-tee police officer (M) ‘iTfaa’ii eet-fah-ee fireman rajul ‘a’maal rah-jool ah-maal businessman

Table 4-3 gives the masculine forms of professions. To convert the masculine forms of professions into the feminine forms, simply add fatHa. For example, to say “translator” in the feminine, you add a fatHa to

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muTarjim to get muTarjima (moo-tar-jee-mah; translator) (F). Take a look at the following conversation:

Alexandra: maa mihnatuka? (maah meeh-nah- too-kah? What do you do?) Hassan: ‘anaa muhandis fii dar al-baydaa’. (ah- nah moo-han-dees fee dar al-bay-dah. I’m an architect in Casablanca.) Alexandra: haadhaa mumtaaz! (hah-zah moom- taz! That’s excellent!) Hassan: wa ‘anti, ‘ayna ta’maliina? (wah ahn- tee, eh-yeh-nah tah-mah-lee-nah? And you, where do you work?) Alexandra: ‘anaa SaHafiyya. (ah-nah sah-hah-fee- yah. I’m a journalist.) Hassan: ma’a ‘ayy jariida? (mah-ah ay jah-ree- dah? With which newspaper?) Alexandra: ma’a nyuu yoork taymz. (mah-ah noo-york tie-mez. With The New York Times.)

Shooting the Breeze: Talking about the Weather If you want to engage in kalaam khafiif, shoot the breeze, or chitchat with a friend or stranger, talking about Taqs (tah-kes; weather) is a pretty safe topic. In conversations about Taqs, you’re likely to use some of the following words:

✓ shams (shah-mes; sun) ✓ maTar (mah-tar; rain) ✓ ra’d (rah-ed; thunder) ✓ barq (bah-rek; lightning) ✓ suHub (soo-hoob; clouds) ✓ Harara (hah-rah-rah; temperature) ✓ daraja (dah-rah-jah; degrees)

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✓ bard (bah-red; cold) ✓ sukhoun (suh-koon; hot) ✓ ruTuuba (roo-too-bah; humidity) ✓ riiH (ree-eh; wind) ✓ ‘aaSifa (ah-tee-fah; storm) ✓ thalj (thah-lej; snow) ✓ qawsu quzaH (qah-wuh-suh koo-zah; rainbow)

If you want to express the temperature, as in “It’s x degrees,” you must use the following construct: al-Harara (insert number) daraja. So, al-Harara 35 daraja means “It’s 35 degrees.”

Here are some expressions you can use to start talking about Taqs:

✓ hal sayakun maTar al-yawm? (hal sah-yah-koon mah-tar al-yah-oum; Is it going to rain today?) ✓ yawm sukhoun, na’am? (yah-oum suh-koon, nah- am; Hot day, isn’t it?) ✓ ‘inna yahubbu al-bard faj’atan. (ee-nah yah-hoo- boo al-bah-red fah-jeh-ah-tan; It’s gotten cold all of a sudden.) ✓ kayfa aT-Taqs fii nyuu yoork? (keh-yeh-fah ah-tah-kes fii noo york? How’s the weather in New York?) ✓ hal satakun shams? (hal sah-tah-koon shah-mes? Is it going to be sunny?) ✓ hal sayabqaa aT-Taqs haakadhaa kul al- usbuu’? (hal sah-yab-qah at-tah-kes hah-kah-zah kool al-oos-boo; Will the weather remain like this all week?)

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It would be difficult to chat about the weather without mentioning the fuSuul (fuh-sool; seasons):

✓ Sayf (sah-yef; summer) ✓ khariif (kah-reef; fall) ✓ shitaa’ (shee-tah; winter) ✓ rabii’ (rah-beeh; spring)

Temperatures in the majority of the Middle Eastern countries are stated in Celsius and not Fahrenheit. If you hear someone say that al-harara 25 daraja (al-hah-rah-rah 25 dah- rah-jah; It’s 25 degrees), don’t worry that you’re going to freeze! They actually mean that it’s almost 80 degrees Fahrenheit. To convert degrees from Celsius to Fahrenheit, use the following formula:

(Celsius x 1.8) + 32 = Degrees Fahrenheit

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08_225233-ch04.indd 72 1/30/09 11:40:57 PM Chapter 5 Enjoying a Drink or a Snack (or a Meal!)

In This Chapter ▶ Covering breakfast, lunch, and dinner ▶ Eating at home ▶ Dining at a restaurant

a’aam (tah-am; food) is a great way to explore a Tnew culture. In this chapter, you expand your vocabulary with the Arabic words for some popular meals and foods, and you find out how to place an order at a restaurant.

All about Meals The three basic wajbaat (waj-bat; meals) in Arabic are:

✓ fuTuur (foo-toor; breakfast) ✓ ghidaa’ (gee-dah; lunch) ✓ ‘ishaa’ (eeh-shah; dinner)

Sometimes when you’re feeling a little jaai’ (jah-eeh; hungry) but aren’t ready for a full course wajba, you may want a small wajba khafiifa (waj-bah kah-fee-fah; snack) instead.

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✓ qahwa (qah-wah; coffee) ✓ kaHla (kah-lah; black) ✓ qahwa bi Haliib (qah-wah bee hah-leeb; coffee with milk) ✓ qahwa bi sukkar (qah-wah bee soo-kar; coffee with sugar) ✓ qahwa bi Haliib wa sukkar (qah-wah bee hah- leeb wah soo-kar; coffee with milk and sugar) ✓ shay (shay; tea) ✓ shay bi ‘asal (shay bee ah-sel; tea with honey) ✓ khubz (koo-bez; bread) ✓ mu’ajjanaat (moo-ah-jah-nat; pastries) ✓ khubz muHammar (koo-bez moo-hah-mar; toasted bread) ✓ khubz bi zabda (koo-bez bee zab-dah; bread with butter) ✓ khubz bi zabda wa ‘asal (koo-bez bee zab-dah wah ah-sal; bread with butter and honey) ✓ shefanj (sheh-fanj; donuts) ✓ Hubuub al-fuTuur (hoo-boob al-foo-toor; breakfast cereal) ✓ bayD (bah-yed; eggs) ✓ ‘aSiir (ah-seer; juice) ✓ ‘aSiir al-burtuqaal (ah-seer al-boor-too-kal; orange juice) ✓ ‘aSiir at-tuffaaH (ah-seer ah-too-fah; apple juice) ✓ ‘aSiir al-jazar (ah-seer al-jah-zar; carrot juice) ✓ Haliib (hah-leeb; milk)

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Do you typically grab your breakfast on the go? Here are some phrases to help you out:

Laura: SabaaH al-khayr ‘aHmad. (sah-bah al-kah- yer ah-mad. Good morning Ahmed.) Ahmed: SabaaH an-nuur lora. maadhaa tuHib- biina haadha aS-SabaaH? (sah-bah ah-noor loh- rah. mah-zah too-hee-bee-nah hah-zah ah-sah-bah? Good morning Laura. What would you like this morning?) Laura: al-’aadii. (al-ah-dee. The usual.) Ahmed: fawran. qahwa wa Haliib, na’am? (fawran. qah-wah wah hah-leeb, nah-am? Right away. Coffee with milk, right?) Laura: na’am. (nah-am. Yes.) Ahmed: kam min mil’aqat as-sukkar? (kam meen meel-ah-kat ah-soo-kar? How many spoons of sugar?) Laura: mil’aqatayn. (meel-ah-qah-tayn. Two spoons.) Ahmed: hal tuHibbiina al-qahwa Saghiira ‘aadiya ‘aw kabiira? (hal too-hee-bee-nah al-qah- wah sah-ghee-rah ah-dee-yah aw kah-bee-rah? Would you like a small, medium, or large coffee?) Laura: ‘uHibbu qahwa kabiira al-yawm. (oo-hee- boo qah-wah kah-bee-rah al-yah-oum. I’d like a large coffee today.) Ahmed: wa hal turiidiina shay’un li al-’akl? (wah hal too-ree-dee-nah shay-oon lee al-ah-kel? And would you like anything to eat?) Laura: hal ‘indaka shefanj? (hal een-dah-kah sheh-fanj? Do you have donuts?) Ahmed: na’am. kam min shefanja turiidiina? (nah-am. kam meen sheh-fan-jah too-ree-dee-nah? Yes. How many donuts do you want?) Laura: ‘uriidu thalaathat shefanja min faDlik. (oo-ree-doo thah-lah-that sheh-fan-jah meen fad- leek. I’d like three donuts please.)

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A piece of faakiha (fah-kee-hah; fruit) is a healthy addition to any fuTuur. Here are some common fawaakih (fah-wah-keeh; fruits):

✓ burtuqaala (boor-too-kal-ah; orange) ✓ tufaaHa (too-fah-hah; apple) ✓ mawza (maw-zah; banana) ✓ tuuta (too-tah; strawberry) ✓ ‘ijaaS (ee-jas; pear) ✓ dallaaHa (dah-lah-hah; watermelon) ✓ baTTiikh (bah-teek; cantaloupe) ✓ khawkha (kaw-kah; peach) ✓ ‘inab (ee-nab; grapes) ✓ laymoon (lay-moon; lemon) ✓ laymoon hindii (lay-moon heen-dee; grapefruit) ✓ laymoon maaliH (lay-moon mah-leeh; lime) ✓ al-anbaj (al-ann-baj; mango)

Lunch Eating your fuTuur keeps you shab’aan (shab-an; sat- isfied) for a few hours. When you get jaai’ (jah-eeh; hungry) again, it’s time for al-ghidaa’ (al-gee-dah; lunch).

al-ghidaa’ is a very important wajba (waj-bah; meal). In most Middle Eastern countries, workers don’t sit in their cubicles and eat their ghidaa’. Rather, most offices close and employees get two hours or more for al-ghidaa’!

Here are some of the common Ta’aam (tah-am; foods) you can expect during the ghidaa’:

✓ laHam (lah-ham; meat) ✓ laHam al-baqar (lah-ham al-bah-kar; beef) ✓ laHam al-ghanam (lah-ham al-ghah-nam; lamb) ✓ laHam al-‘ajal (lah-ham al-ah-jel; veal)

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✓ samak (sah-mak; fish) ✓ dajaaj (dah-jaj; chicken) ✓ ruz (rooz; rice)

Sometimes, your ghidaa’ may consist of a simple sandwiish (sand-weesh; sandwich). Other times, you may prefer a nice, healthy salada (sah-lah-dah; salad). Here are some khudar (koo-dar; vegetables) to help you make your salada ladhiidha (lah-zee-zah; delicious):

✓ khass (kass; lettuce) ✓ TamaaTim (tah-mah-teem; tomatoes) ✓ khurshuuf (koor-shoof; artichokes) ✓ baTaaTis (bah-tah-tees; potatoes) ✓ hilyoon (heel-yoon; asparagus) ✓ ‘afookaat (ah-foo-kat; avocado) ✓ qarnabiiT (kar-nah-beet; broccoli) ✓ qunnabiiT (koo-nah-beet; cauliflower) ✓ dhurra (zoo-rah; corn) ✓ khiyaar (kee-yar; cucumber) ✓ fuul (fool; beans) ✓ ‘ayshu al-ghuraab (ay-shoo al-ghoo-rab; mushrooms) ✓ baSla (bass-lah; onions) ✓ baziilya (bah-zee-lee-yah; peas) ✓ ‘isfaanaakh (ees-fah-nak; spinach)

In order to make a sandwiish even more delicious, add some of the following Tawaabil (tah-wah-beel; condiments):

✓ SalSa min aT-TamaaTim (sal-sah meen at-tah- mah-teem; ketchup) ✓ khardal (kar-dal; mustard) ✓ miiyooniiz (mee-yoo-neez; mayonnaise) ✓ mukhallalaat (moo-kah-lah-lat; pickles)

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If you’re particular about how you like your sandwich, the following phrases will help you out when you head to the sandwich shop:

Nawal: ‘ahlan. kayfa yumkin ‘an ‘usaa’iduka? (ahel-an. kay-fah yoom-keen an oo-sah-ee-doo- kah? Hi. How may I help you?) Matt: ‘uriidu ‘an ‘aTlub sandwiish min faDlik. (oo-ree-doo an at-loob sand-weesh meen fad-leek. I would like to order a sandwich please.) Nawal: ‘ay Hajem sandwiish turiid: kabiir ‘aw Saghiir? (ay hah-jem sand-weesh too-reed: kah- beer aw sah-gheer? What size sandwich do you want: large or small?) Matt: as-sandwiish al-kabiir. (ah-sand-weesh al- kah-beer. The large sandwich.) Nawal: ‘ay naw’ min khubz tuHibb: khubz ‘abyaD ‘aw khubz az-zara’? (ay nah-ouh meen koo-bez too-heeb: koo-bez ab-yad aw koo-bez ah- zah-rah? What type of bread would you like: white bread or whole wheat bread?) Matt: khubz ‘abyaD. (koo-bez ab-yad. White bread.) Nawal: ‘indanaa jamii’ al-alHaam: laHam al- ghanam, laHam al-baqar wa laHam al-’ajal. wa ‘indanaa dajaaj ‘ayDan. ‘ay laHam turiid fii as- sandwiish? (een-dah-nah jah-meeh al-al-ham: lah- ham al-ghah-nam, lah-ham al-bah-kar wah lah-ham al-ah-jal. wah een-dah-nah dah-jaj ay-zan. ay lah-ham too-reed fee ah-sand-weesh? We have all sorts of meat: lamb, beef, and veal. And we also have chicken. What kind of meat do you want in the sandwich?) Matt: dajaaj min faDlik. (dah-jaj meen fad-leek. Chicken please.) Nawal: wa hal tuHibb khudar fii as-sandwiish? (wah hal too-heeb koo-dar fee ah-sand-weesh? And would you like any vegetables in your sandwich?)

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Matt: na’am. hal ‘indakum TamaaTim? (nah-am. hal een-dah-koom tah-mah-teem? Yes. Do you have any tomatoes?) Nawal: na’am. shay’ ‘aakhar? (nah-am. shay ah-kar? Yes. Anything else?) Matt: khass, qarnabiiT wa baSla. (kass, kar-nah- beet wah bas-lah. Lettuce, broccoli, and onions.) Nawal: ‘afwan, ma ‘indanaa qarnabiiT. (af-wan, mah een-dah-nah kar-nah-beet. I apologize, we don’t have any broccoli.) Matt: Tayyib. Khass wa TamaaTim faqat. (tah- yeeb. kass, wah tah-mah-teem fah-kat. That’s okay. Lettuce and tomatoes will do.) Nawal: wa hal turiid Tawaabil? (wah hal too-reed tah-wah-beel? And do you want condiments?) Matt: mukhallalaat faqat. shukran. (moo-kah-lah- lat fah-kat. shook-ran. Pickles only. Thank you.)

Words to Know ‘aTlub at-loob order Hajem hah-jem size naw’ nah-ouh type khubz ‘abyaD koo-bez ab-yad white bread khubz az-zara’ koo-bez whole wheat ah-zah-rah bread jamii’ jah-meeh all sorts faqat fah-kat only

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The most important fi’l (fee-al; verb) you should know relating to Ta’aam is the verb ‘akala (ah-kah-lah), which means “ate” in the past tense. In the present tense, it’s conjugated as ya’kulu (yah-koo-loo; to eat). See Tables 5-1 and 5-2.

Table 5-1 The Past Tense of the Verb ‘akala (To Eat) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa ‘akaltu ah-nah ah-kal-too I ate ‘anta ‘akalta ahn-tah ah-kal-tah You ate (MS) ‘anti ‘akalti ahn-tee ah-kal-tee You ate (FS) huwa ‘akala hoo-wah ah-kah-lah He ate hiya ‘akalat hee-yah ah-kah-lat She ate naHnu nah-noo ah-kal-nah We ate ‘akalnaa ‘antum ahn-toom ah-kal-toom You ate (MP) ‘akaltum ‘antunna ahn-too-nah You ate (FP) ‘akaltunna ah-kal-too-nah hum ‘akaluu hoom ah-kah-loo They ate (MP) hunna ‘akalna hoo-nah ah-kal-nah They ate (FP) antumaa ahn-too-mah You ate ‘akaltumaa ah-kal-too-mah (dual/MP/FP) humaa hoo-mah ah-kah-lah They ate ‘akalaa (dual/MP) humaa hoo-mah They ate (dual/FP) ‘akalataa ah-kah-lah-tah

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Table 5-2 Present Tense Conjugation of ya’kulu (To Eat) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa ‘a’kulu ah-nah ah-koo-loo I am eating ‘anta ta’kulu ahn-tah tah-koo-loo You are eating (MS) ‘anti ta’kuliina ahn-tee tah-koo-lee- You are eating nah (FS) huwa ya’kulu hoo-wah yah-koo-loo He is eating hiya ta’kulu hee-yah tah-koo-loo She is eating naHnu na’kulu nah-noo nah-koo-loo We are eating ‘antum ahn-toom tah-koo-loo- You are eating ta’kuluuna nah (MP) ‘antunna ahn-too-nah tah-kool- You are eating ta’kulna nah (FP) hum ya’kuluuna hoom yah-koo-loo-nah They are eating (MP) hunna ya’kulna hoo-nah yah-kool-nah They are eating (FP) antumaa ahn-too-mah tah-koo- You are eating ta’kulaani lah-nee (dual/MP/FP) humaa hoo-mah yah-koo-lah- They are eating ya’kulaani nee (dual/MP) humaa hoo-mah tah-koo-lah- They are eating ta’kulaani nee (dual/FP)

Dinner In most Arab countries, ‘ishaa’ (eeh-shah; dinner) is usually eaten very late, around 9 or even 10 p.m. Because ghidaa’ and fuTuur are the meals at which people eat a lot, and because of the traditionally late hour of ‘ishaa’, most people in the Arab world have light meals during ‘ishaa’.

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A typical ‘ishaa’ consists of some sort of samak (sah- mak; fish), dajaaj (dah-jaj; chicken), or other kind of laHm (lah-hem; meat).

Enjoying a Meal at Home This section covers key terms to help you prepare and set the table for a wajba ladhiida fii al-manzil (waj-bah lah-zee-zah fee al-man-zeel; a delicious home- cooked meal)!

Here are some common items you might find in your maTbakh (mat-bak; kitchen):

✓ furn (foo-ren; stove) ✓ thallaaja (thah-lah-jah; refrigerator) ✓ maghsala (mag-sah-lah; sink) ✓ khizaanaat (kee-zah-nat; cupboards) ✓ milH (mee-leh; salt) ✓ fulful (fool-fool; pepper) ✓ zayt az-zaytuun (zah-yet ah-zay-toon; olive oil)

When you’re done Tibaakha (tee-bah-kah; cooking) daakhil (dah-keel; inside) the maTbakh, you’re ready to step into the ghurfat al-‘akel (ghoor-fat al-ah-kel; dining room) and set up the Ta’aam on top of the maa’ida (mah-ee-dah; dining table). Here are some items you may find on your maa’ida:

✓ ‘aS-SHaan (ass-han; plates) ✓ ‘aTbaaq (at-bak; dishes) ✓ ku’uus (koo-oos; glasses) ✓ ‘akwaab (ak-wab; tumblers) ✓ ‘awaan fiDDiyya (ah-wan fee-dee-yah; silverware) ✓ shawkaat (shaw-kat; forks)

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✓ malaa’iq (mah-lah-eek; spoons) ✓ sakaakiin (sah-kah-keen; knives) ✓ manaadil (mah-nah-deel; napkins)

Dining Out Going to a nice maT’am (mat-am; restaurant) is one of my favorite things to do. In this section, you find out how to interact with the wait staff and choose the best food.

The dining experience in most restaurants in the Middle East, as well as in Middle Eastern restaurants all over the world, is truly an enchanting and magical experience. The décor is usually very ornate and sumptuous, with oriental patterns and vivid colors adorning the rooms. The wait staff usually wears traditional jellaba (jeh-lah-bah), which are long, flowing garments that are pleasing to the eye, and the food is very exotic, spicy, and delicious. When you go to a Middle Eastern restaurant, allow at least a couple of hours for the dining experience — don’t be surprised if you end up savoring a five- or even seven-course meal!

Perusing the menu As in other restaurants, the qaa’imat aT-Ta’aam (qah- ee-mah ah-tah-am; menu) in Middle Eastern restaurants is usually divided into three sections:

✓ muqabbilaat (moo-qah-bee-lat; appetizers) ✓ Ta’aam ra’iisii (tah-am rah-ee-see; main course/ entrees) ✓ taHliya (tah-lee-yah; dessert)

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Appetizers In the muqabbilaat section of the menu, you find some Ta’aam khafiif (tah-am kah-feef; light food) to help build your appetite. Here are some common muqabbilaat:

✓ rubyaan (roob-yan; shrimp) ✓ baadhinjaan (bah-zeen-jan; eggplant) ✓ kam’a (kam-ah; truffles) ✓ thuum muHammar (toom moo-hah-mar; roasted garlic) ✓ waraq ‘ay-nab (wah-rak ay-nab; stuffed grape leaves) ✓ ‘adas (ah-das; lentils) ✓ Hasaa’ (hah-sah; soup) ✓ Hariira (hah-ree-rah; Moroccan soup)

Entrees The Ta’aam ra’iisii consist of dishes featuring dajaaj (dah-jaj; chicken), various other laHam (lah-ham; meat), and samak (sah-mak; fish). Most restaurants have a pretty extensive selection of samak, including:

✓ salmoon (sal-moon; salmon) ✓ al-qood (al-kood; cod) ✓ tuun (toon; tuna) ✓ al-’uTruuT (al-oot-root; trout) ✓ ‘isqoomrii (ees-koom-ree; mackerel) ✓ shabbooT (shah-boot; carp) ✓ moosaa (moo-sah; sole) ✓ qirsh (kee-resh; shark)

Desserts The taHliya is a great way to wrap up a nice wajba. I like the taHliya because there are a lot of

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Halawiyyaat (hah-lah-wee-yat; sweets) to choose from. Here are some popular taHliya:

✓ ka’k (kahk; cake) ✓ ka’k ash-shuukuulaat (kahk ah-shoo-koo-lat; chocolate cake) ✓ Buudha (boo-zah; ice cream) ✓ ‘aTbaaq (at-bak; pudding) ✓ al-jubun (al-joo-boon; cheese)

Beverages In addition to Ta’aam, you may also notice a portion of the menu — or an entirely different menu — introducing different kinds of mashruubaat (mash-roo-bat; drinks). The following are some mashruubaat you may come across in the qaa’imat aT-Ta’aam:

✓ maa’ (mah; water) ✓ maa’ ghaaziya (mah ghah-zee-yah; soda water) ✓ ‘aSiir al-laymoon (ah-seer ah-lay-moon; lemonade) ✓ al-khamer (al-kah-mer; alcohol) ✓ biirra (bee-rah; beer) ✓ nabiidh (nah-beez; wine) ✓ nabiidh ‘aHmar (nah-beez ah-mar; red wine) ✓ nabiidh ‘abyaD (nah-beez ab-yad; white wine)

Placing your order After you peruse the qaa’imat aT-Ta’aam, you’re ready to place your order with either the

✓ khaadim al-maT’am (kah-deem al-mat-am; waiter) or the ✓ khaadimat al-maT’am (kah-dee-maht al-mat-am; waitress).

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maT’am staff are usually highly trained individuals who know the ins and outs of the Ta’aam that the maT’am serves, so don’t be afraid to ask lots of ‘as’ila (ass-ee-lah; questions) about things on the qaa’imat aT-Ta’aam. Here’s how you might order:

Waitress: marHaba bikum ‘ilaa maT’am ‘aTlas. kayfa yumkin ‘an ‘usaa’idukum? (mar-hah-bah bee-koom ee-lah mat-ham at-las. kay-fah yoom- keen an oo-sah-ee-doo-koom? Welcome to Restaurant Atlas. How may I help you?) Sam: ‘ay mashruubaat ‘indakum? (ay mash-roo- bat een-dah-koom? What do you have to drink?) Waitress: ‘indanaa maa’, maa’ ghaaziya wa ‘aSiir al-laymoon. (een-dah-nah mah, mah ghah- zee-yah wah ah-seer ah-lay-moon. We have water, soda water, and lemonade.) Sam: sa-nabda’ bi maa’ min faDlik. (sah-nab-dah bee mah meen fad-leek. We’ll start with water please.) Waitress: turiidaani maa’ Tabi’ii ‘aw maa’ ‘aadii? (too-ree-dah-nee mah tah-bee-eey aw mah ah-dee? Do you want mineral [bottled] water or regular [tap] water?) Sam: maa’ Tabi’ii. (mah tah-bee-eey. Mineral water.) Waitress: fawran. hal turiidaani khamer ‘ayDan? (faw-ran. hal too-ree-dah-nee kah-mer ay-zan? Right away. And would you like any alco- holic drinks as well?) Atika: hal ‘indakum nabiidh? (hal een-dah-koom nah-beez? Do you have any wine?) Waitress: na’am. ‘indanaa nabiidh ‘abyaD wa nabiidh ‘aHmar. (nah-am. een-dah-nah nah-beez ab-yad wah nah-beez ah-mar. Yes. We have white wine and red wine.) Atika: sa-na’khudh nabiidh ‘aHmar min faDlik. (sah-nah-kooz nah-beez ah-mar meen fad-leek. We’ll have red wine please.)

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Waitress: mumtaaz. sa ‘a’Tiikum waqt li- taqra’aani al-qaa’ima. (moom-taz. sah ah-tee- koom wah-ket lee-tak-rah-ah-nee al-qah-ee-mah. Excellent. I’ll give you some time to read through the menu.) Sam: shukran. (shook-ran. Thank you.) Waitress: hal ‘antumaa musta’idaani li-’iTlaab aT-Ta’aam? (hal an-too-mah moos-tah-ee-dah-nee lee-eet-lab ah-tah-am? Are you ready to place your order?) Atika: na’am. li al-muqabbilaat sa-nabda’ bi rubyaan wa kam’a. (nah-am. lee al-moo-qah-bee- lat sah-nab-dah bee roob-yan wah kam-ah. Yes. For appetizers, we’d like shrimp and truffles.) Waitress: ‘ikhtiyaar mumtaaz. (eek-tee-yar moom-taz. Excellent selection.) Sam: wa ba’da dhaalika sa-na’khudh salmoon. (wah bah-dah zah-lee-kah sa-nah-kooz sal-moon. And after that we’d like to have salmon.) Waitress: shay’ ‘aakhar? (shay ah-kar? Anything else?) Atika: nuriid ka’k ash-shuukuulaat li at-taHliya. (noo-reed kahk ah-shoo-koo-lat lee ah-tah-lee-yah. We’d like the chocolate cake for dessert.)

Finishing your meal and paying the bill When you finish your meal, you need to take care of your Hisaab (hee-sab; bill). You may ask your waiter for the bill by saying al-Hisaab min faDlik (al-hee-sab meen fad-leek; the bill please). Another option is to ask the waiter or waitress kam al-kaamil? (kam al- kah-meel; What’s the total?).

Like in the United States, tipping your waiter or waitress is customary in Arabic-speaking countries and Middle Eastern restaurants. The amount of the baqsheeh (bak- sheesh; tip) depends on the kind of service you received, but usually 15 to 20 percent is average.

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09_225233-ch05.indd 88 1/30/09 11:41:14 PM Chapter 6 Shop ’til You Drop!

In This Chapter ▶ Browsing inside the store ▶ Comparing items and costs ▶ Identifying clothing sizes and colors

hether you’re hardcore or just window shop- Wping, this chapter gives you what you need to know.

Going to the Store When you want to buy something, you head to the dukkaan (doo-kan; store). Depending on your shopping list, you can choose from different types of dakaakiin (dah-kah-keen; stores). Here are some specialty dakaakiin you may need to visit:

✓ makhbaza (mak-bah-zah; bakery) ✓ maktaba (mak-tah-bah; bookstore/library) ✓ dukkaan al-malaabis (doo-kan al-mah-lah-bees; clothing store) ✓ dukkaan al-iliktroniyaat (doo-kan al-ee-leek- troo-nee-yat; electronics store) ✓ dukkaan al-Halawiyyaat (doo-kan al-hah-lah- wee-yat; pastry shop) ✓ dukkaan al-baqqaal (doo-kan al-bah-kal; grocery store)

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✓ dukkaan as-samak (doo-kan ah-sah-mak; fish store) ✓ jawharii (jaw-hah-ree; jeweler)

Other types of dakaakiin provide services, such as haircuts and manicures. Here are some dakaakiin that are more service-oriented:

✓ maktab as-siyaaHa (mak-tab ah-see-yah-hah; travel agency) ✓ Hallaaq (hah-lak; barber/hairdresser) ✓ dukkaan al-jamal (doo-kan al-jah-mal; beauty parlor)

If you need to shop for a variety of goods, your destination is the dukkaan kabiir (doo-kan kah-beer; department store/mall), where you can find almost anything you want.

Browsing the merchandise Sometimes you just need to browse. If so, a khaadim ad-dukkaan (kah-deem ah-doo-kan; store clerk) (M) or a khaadima ad-dukkaan (kah-dee-mah ah-doo-kan; store clerk) (F) may ask:

✓ hal yumkin ‘an ‘usaa’iduka? (hal yoom-keen an oo-sah-ee-doo-kah?; May I help you?) (M) ✓ hal yumkin ‘an ‘usaa’iduki? (hal yoom-keen an oo-sah-ee-doo-kee?; May I help you?) (F) ✓ hal turiidu shay’ khaaS? (hal too-ree-doo shay kas?; Are you looking for anything in particular?) (M) ✓ hal turiidiina shay’ khaaS? (hal too-ree-dee-nah shay kas?; Are you looking for anything in particular?) (F)

If you need musaa’ada (moo-sah-ah-dah; help/assistance), simply respond by saying na’am (nah-am; yes). Otherwise, if you want to continue browsing, laa

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shukran (lah shook-ran; no thank you) should do the trick.

Getting around the store If you want tawjiihaat (taw-jee-hat; directions) to part of the store, head to the maktab al-’i’laamaat (mak-tab al-eeh-lah-mat; information desk) to have your ‘as’ila (ass-ee-lah; questions) answered. Here are some ‘as’ila to help you practice:

✓ hal yumkin ‘an tusaa’idunii? (hal yoom-keen an too-sah-ee-doo-nee; Is it possible for you to help me?) ✓ ‘ayna aT-Tabiq al-’awwal? (ay-nah ah-tah-beek al-ah-wal; Where is the first floor?) ✓ ‘ayna al-miS’ad? (ay-nah al-mees-ad; Where is the elevator?) ✓ hal hunaaka miS’ad ‘ilaa aT-Tabaq al-khaamis? (hal hoo-nah-kah mees-ad ee-lah ah-tah-bak al- kah-mees? Is there an elevator to the fifth floor?) ✓ ‘ayna maHall al-malaabis? (ay-nah mah-hal al- mah-lah-bees; Where is the section for clothes?) ✓ fii ‘ay Tabaq al-jawharii? (fee ay tah-baq al-jaw- hah-ree; On which floor is the jeweler located?) ✓ hal hunaaka makhbaza fii ad-dukaan al-kabiir? (hal hoo-nah-kah mak-bah-zah fee ah-doo-kan al- kah-beer; Is there a bakery in the mall?)

Words to Know yabHathu yab-hah-thoo searching maHall mah-hal section nisaa’ nee-sah women continued

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Words to Know (continued) rijaal ree-jal men banaat bah-nat girls ‘awlaad aw-lad boys Tabiq tah-beek floor miS’ad mees-ad elevator yamiin yah-meen right yaSaar yah-sar left yamiinuki yah-mee-noo-kee your right (F) yamiinuka yah-mee-noo-kah your right (M) yaSaaruki yah-sah-roo-kee your left (F) yaSaaruka yah-sah-roo-kah your left (M) daakhil dah-keel inside khaarij kah-reej outside

Asking for a Particular Item When you want a particular item, you’re likely to need a demonstrative word, such as “that one” or “this” or “those over there.” Demonstratives are the little words we use to specify particular items. Table 6-1 presents the common demonstratives in Arabic:

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Table 6-1 Arabic Demonstratives Arabic Pronunciation Translation haadhaa hah-zah this (MS) haadhihi hah-zee-hee this (FS) dhaalika zah-lee-kah that (MS) Tilka teel-kah that (FS) haa’ulaa’ii hah-oo-lah-ee these (gender neutral) ‘ulaa’ika oo-lah-ee-kah those (gender neutral)

In a sentence, you always place the demonstrative word before the object being pointed to, which is often a noun. In addition, the noun must be defined using the definite prefix pronoun al-.

The following conversation illustrates some common demonstratives:

Omar: hal ‘indakum jakiiTaat? (hal een-dah- koom jah-kee-tat? Do you have jackets?) Salesperson: na’am. ‘indanaa ‘anwaa’ kathiira min aj-jakiiTaat. ‘an ‘ay naw’ tabHathu? (nah- am. een-dah-nah an-wah kah-thee-rah meen ah- jah-kee-tat. an ay nah-weh tab-hah-thoo? Yes. We have many different kinds of jackets. Which kind are you looking for?) Omar: ‘uriidu jakiiTa bi aj-jald. (oo-ree-doo jah- kee-tah bee ah-jah-led. I want a leather jacket.) Salesperson: Tayyib. ‘itba’nii min faDlik. (tah- yeeb. eet-bah-nee meen fad-leek. Okay. Follow me please.) Salesperson: ‘ulaa’ika kul aj-jakiiTaat ‘indanaa. (oo-lah-ee-kah kool ah-jah-kee-tat een-dah-nah. Those are all the jackets we have.) Omar: ‘uHibbu haa’ulaa’ii aj-jakiiTaat. (oo-hee- boo hah-oo-lah-ee ah-jah-kee-tat. I like these jackets.)

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Salesperson: ‘anaa muwaafiq. ‘innahaa jamiila jiddan. (ah-nah moo-wah-feek. ee-nah-hah jah- mee-lah jee-dan. I agree. They are very beautiful.) Omar: ‘uriidu ‘an ‘ujarrib haadhihi. (oo-ree-doo an oo-jah-reeb hah-zee-hee. I would like to try on this one.) Salesperson: fawran. hal turiidu lawn khaaS? (faw-ran. hal too-ree-doo lah-wen kass? Right away. Are you looking for any particular color?) Omar: ‘uriidu dhaalika al-lawn. (oo-ree-doo zah- lee-kah ah-lah-wen. I want that color.)

Words to Know naw’ nah-weh type/kind yatba’u yat-bah-oo following ‘itba’ eet-bah follow (imperative) ‘itba’nii eet-bah-nee follow me muwaafiq moo-wah-feek agree jamiil jah-meel beautiful (M) jamiila jah-mee-lah beautiful (F) ‘ujarrib oo-jah-reeb to try (I/me) lawn lah-wen color khaaS kass particular (M) khaaSSa kah-sah particular (F)

10_225233-ch06.indd 94 1/30/09 11:41:33 PM Chapter 6: Shop ’til You Drop! 95 Comparing Merchandise Debating between two or more comparable items? In this section, you discover how to evaluate comparable (and incomparable) items based on a variety of important criteria, such as price, quality, and durability.

Comparing two or more items Adjectives are the linguistic backbone that allow for comparisons between different items, products, or goods. Table 6-2 lists some of the most common adjectives. Table 6-3 lists the comparative forms of those adjectives.

Table 6-2 Common Arabic Adjectives Adjective Pronunciation Translation Kabiir kah-beer big Saghiir sah-gheer small Hasan hah-san good suu’ sooh bad rakhiiS rah-kees cheap ghalii ghah-lee expensive sarii’ sah-reeh fast baTii’ bah-teeh slow thaqiil tah-keel heavy khafiif kah-feef light jamiil jah-meel pretty bashii’ bah-sheeh ugly ba’iid bah-eed far qariib qah-reeb near jadiid jah-deed new qadiim qah-deem old

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Table 6-3 Comparative Forms of Common Adjectives Comparative Pronunciation Translation ‘akbar ak-bar bigger ‘aSghar ass-ghar smaller ‘aHsan ah-san better ‘aswa’ as-wah worse ‘arkhas ar-kas cheaper ‘aghlaa ag-lah more expensive ‘asra’ ass-rah faster ‘abTa ab-tah slower ‘athqal at-kal heavier ‘akhfaa ak-fah lighter ‘ajmal aj-mal prettier ‘absha’ ab-shah uglier ‘ab’ad ab-ad farther ‘aqrab ak-rab nearer ‘ajadd ah-jad newer ‘aqdam ak-dam older

Similar to English, the comparative forms of adjectives always follow this pattern:

noun + adjective comparative form + preposition min (meen; than) + second adjective

It’s essential that you include the preposition min right after every comparative adjective. In addition, all nouns being compared need to be defined by attaching to them the definite article prefix al-.

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Here are some common examples of comparative sentences using the adjective forms:

✓ al-bint ‘akbar min al-walad. (al-bee-net ak-bar meen al-wah-lad; The girl is bigger than the boy.) ✓ at-tilifizyuun ‘aghlaa min al-midyaa’. (ah-tee- lee-fee-zee-yoon ag-lah meen al-meed-yah; The television is more expensive than the radio.) ✓ as-sayyaara ‘asra’ min as-shaaHina. (ah-sah-yah- rah as-rah meen ah-shah-hee-nah; The car is faster than the bus.) ✓ aj-jakiiTa ‘arkhas min al-qamiis. (ah-jah-kee-tah ar-kas meen al-qah-mees; The jacket is cheaper than the shirt.)

When forming these types of sentences, you may add demonstratives to be even more specific. Here are examples of comparative sentences used in conjunction with demonstratives:

✓ haadhihi al-bint ‘akbar min dhaalika al-walad. (hah-zee-hee al-bee-net ak-bar meen zah-lee-kah al-wah-lad; This girl is bigger than that boy.) ✓ haadhihi as-sayyaaraat ‘asra’ min ‘tilka as- shaahinaat. (hah-zee-hee ah-sah-yah-rat as-rah meen teel-kah ah-shah-hee-nat; These cars are faster than those buses.) ✓ tilka al-‘imra’a ‘ajmal min dhaalika ar-rajul. (teel-kah al-eem-rah-ah aj-mal meen zah-lee-kah ah-rah-jool; That woman is prettier than that man.) ✓ haadhaa al-walad ‘akbar min ‘ulaa’ika al- banaat. (hah-zah al-wah-lad ak-bar meen oo-lah- ee-kah al-bah-nat; This boy is bigger than those girls.)

Notice in the examples that the adjective comparative form remains constant whether the nouns being compared are a combination of singular/singular, singular/plural, or

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plural/plural. In other words, the adjective comparatives are neutral: They remain the same regardless of both gender and number.

Picking out the best item You use a superlative to say something is the “best,” “brightest,” “fastest,” “cleanest,” or “cheapest.” Basically, a superlative in Arabic is nothing more than the comparative form of the adjective! The only difference is that comparatives include the preposition min (than) and superlatives don’t include any preposition. For example, to tell someone, “This is the biggest house,” you say haadhaa ‘akbar manzil (hah-zah ak-bar man-zeel).

The biggest differences between superlatives and comparatives are:

✓ The superlative adjective always comes before the noun. ✓ When expressing a superlative, the noun is always undefined.

Here are some examples of superlative sentences:

✓ haadhihi ‘ajmal bint. (hah-zee-hee aj-mal bee- net; This is the prettiest girl.) ✓ dhaalika ‘ab’ad dukkaan. (zah-lee-kah ab-ad doo-kan; That is the farthest store.)

If you switch the order of the words to demonstrative + noun + superlative, be sure to define the noun. That’s the only other way you can construct a superlative sentence. For example:

✓ haadhihi al-bint ‘ajmal. (hah-zee-hee al-bee-net aj-mal; This girl is the prettiest.) ✓ dhaalika ad-dukaan ‘ab’ad. (zah-lee-kah ah-doo- kan ab-ad; That store is the farthest.)

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Here’s a conversation you might have when shopping around for the best option:

Salesman: SabaaH an-nuur wa marHaba ‘ilaa ad-dukkaan al-iliktroniyaat. (Sah-bah ah-noor wah mar-hah-bah ee-lah ah-doo-kan al-ee-leek- troo-nee-yat. Good morning and welcome to the electronics store.) Adam: shukran. ‘anaa ‘abHathu ‘an muSaw- wira. (shook-ran. ah-nah ab-hah-thoo an moo-sah- wee-rah. Thank you. I am looking for a camera.) Salesman: hal tabHathu ‘an naw’ mu’ayyin? (hal tab-hah-thoo an nah-weh moo-ah-yeen? Are you looking for a particular model?) Adam: ‘abHath ‘an ‘aHsan muSawwira. (ab-hath an ah-san moo-sah-wee-rah. I’m looking for the best camera.) Salesman: Tayyib. ‘indanaa haadhaa an-naw’ bi alwaan mutaghayyira. (Tah-yeeb. een-dah-nah hah- zah ah-nah-weh bee al-wan moo-tah-ghah-yee-rah. Okay. We have this model with different colors.) Adam: hal ‘indakum naw’ ‘aakhar? (hal een-dah- koom nah-weh ah-kar? Do you have another model?) Salesman: na’am. haadhaa an-naw’ ath-thaanii mashhuur ma’a az-zabaa’in. (nah-am. hah-zah ah-nah-weh ah-thah-nee mash-hoor mah-ah ah- zah-bah-een. Yes. This second model is popular with customers.) Adam: ‘ay naw’ ‘aHsan? (ay nah-weh ah-san? Which is the best model?) Salesman: an-naw’ ath-thaanii ‘aHsan min an-naw’ al-awwal. (ah-nah-weh ah-thah-nee ah-san meen ah-nah-weh al-ah-wal. The second model is better than the first model.) Adam: ‘uriidu ‘an ‘ashtarii an-naw’ ath-thaanii min faDlik. (oo-ree-doo an ash-tah-ree ah-nah-weh ah-thah-nee meen fad-leek. I’d like to buy the second model please.) Salesman: ‘ikhtiyaar mumtaaz! (eek-tee-yar moom-taz! Excellent selection!)

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Words to Know mu’ayyin moo-ah-yeen particular (M) mu’ayyina moo-ah-yee-nah particular (F) mutaghayyir moo-tah- different (M) ghah-yeer mutaghayyira moo-tah- different (F) ghah-yee-rah zabaa’in zah-bah-een customers ‘ikhtiyaar eek-tee-yar selection (M) ‘ikthiyaara eek-tee-yah-rah selection (F)

Shopping for Clothes For many people, one of the most essential items to shop for is malaabis (mah-lah-bees; clothes). Table 6-4 lists some basic articles of clothing and accessories you should know.

Table 6-4 Clothing and Accessories Arabic Pronunciation Translation sirwaal seer-wal pants (S) saraawiil sah-rah-weel pants (P) qamiis qah-mees shirt ‘aqmisa ak-mee-sah shirts mi’Taf meeh-taf coat ma’aaTif mah-ah-teef coats kaswa kass-wah dress

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Arabic Pronunciation Translation ‘aksiwa ak-see-wah dresses jallaaba jah-lah-bah Arab dress jallaabaat jah-lah-bat Arab dresses Hizaam hee-zam belt ‘aHzima ah-zee-mah belts qubba’a koo-bah-ah hat qubba’aat koo-bah-at hats jawrab jaw-rab sock jawaarib jah-wah-reeb socks Hidaa’ hee-dah shoe ‘aHdiya ah-dee-yah shoes khaatim kah-teem ring saa’a sah-ah watch

An important consideration when you’re out shopping for malaabis is al-Hajem (al-hah-jem; size). The four standard clothes sizes are:

✓ Saghiir (sah-gheer; small) (American size [Men’s]: 34–36; American size [Women’s]: 6–8) ✓ waSat (wah-sat; medium) (American size [Men’s]: 38–40; American size [Women’s]: 10–12) ✓ kabiir (kah-beer; large) (American size [Men’s]: 42–44; American size [Women’s]: 14–16) ✓ zaa’id kabiir (zah-eed kah-beer; extra large) (American size [Men’s]: 46 and above; American size [Women’s]: 18–20)

Another important consideration in clothes shopping is the lawn (lah-wen; color). Because ‘alwaan (al-wan; colors) are adjectives that describe nouns, a lawn must always agree with the noun in terms of gender. How do you know whether a noun is feminine or masculine? In about 80 percent of the cases, feminine

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nouns end with a fatHa, or the “ah” sound. For the rest, you must look up the word in the qaamuus (qah- moos; dictionary) to determine its gender. The masculine and feminine forms of some common colors appear in Table 6-5.

Table 6-5 Basic Colors in Arabic Color (M) Pronuncia- Color (F) Pronuncia- Translation tion tion ‘abyaD ab-yad bayDaa’ bay-dah white ‘aswad ass-wad sawdaa’ saw-dah black ‘aHmar ah-mar Hamraa’ ham-rah red ‘akhDar ak-dar khaDraa’ kad-rah green ‘azraq az-rak zarqaa’ zar-qah blue ‘aSfar ass-far Safraa’ saf-rah yellow

10_225233-ch06.indd 102 1/30/09 11:41:33 PM Chapter 7 Making Leisure a Top Priority

In This Chapter ▶ Experiencing the culture of a museum ▶ Taking in a movie ▶ Touring religious sites ▶ Playing sports ▶ Heading outside

his chapter is all about leisure, whether going out Tin the madiina (mah-dee-nah; city), picking up a game with friends, or hitting the beach.

Visiting Museums A ziyaara (zee-yah-rah; visit) to a matHaf (mat-haf; museum) can be a wonderful experience as long as you follow a number of qawaa’id (qah-wah-eed; rules). These qawaa’id ensure that your experience and the experiences of others at the matHaf are jamiila (jah- mee-lah; pleasant).

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Arab scholars and Western civilization Many of the works of the ancient Greek masters, such as Aristotle and Plato, were preserved by Islamic scholars when Europe was plunged into the Dark Ages (from about the Fifth through the Tenth centuries). Muslim scholars throughout the Muslim world, in Cordoba, Spain, and else- where, translated gargantuan amounts of texts from Greek and Latin into Arabic. They studied these texts extensively and added a significant amount to the pool of knowledge. Thanks to the work of these Muslim scholars, much of the knowledge that serves as the basis of Western thought and civilization was preserved. In fact, while Europe was in the Dark Ages, Islam went through a revival and renaissance period not experienced anywhere else in the world.

When visiting a matHaf, here are some phrases you may use or see posted:

✓ hayyaa binaa ‘ilaa al-matHaf al-yawm. (hah-yah bee-nah ee-lah al-mat-haf al-yah-oum. Let’s go to the museum today.) ✓ ‘ayna al-matHaf? (eh-yeh-nah al-mat-haf? Where is the museum located?) ✓ wa bikam biTaaqat ad-dukhuul? (wah bee-kam bee-tah-kat ah-doo-kool? And how much is the entry ticket?) ✓ mataa yaftaHu al-matHaf? (mah-tah yaf-tah-hoo al-mat-haf? When does the museum open?) ✓ al-matHaf yaftaHu ma’a as-saa’a ath-thaamina fii aS-SabaaH. (al-mat-haf yaf-tah-hoo mah-ah ah- sah-ah ah-thah-mee-nah fee ah-sah-bah. The museum opens at 8:00 in the morning.) ✓ Suwar mamnuu’a. (soo-war mam-noo-ah; Taking pictures is prohibited.) ✓ malaabis munaasiba Daruuriya (mah-lah-bees moo-naa-see-bah dah-roo-ree-yah; Proper attire required.)

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Words to Know Ziyaaratukum zee-yah-rah- your visit (MP) too-koom tamtii’ tam-teeh entertainment mutamatti’a moo-tah-mah- entertaining tee-ah jiddan jee-dan very ra’aa rah-ah saw fann fah-n art taSwiir tah-sweer painting rasm rah-sem drawing/carving zaliij zah-leej marble jamiil jah-meel pretty/ beautiful jawla jah-ou-lah tour khalfa kal-fah around dukhuul doo-kool entrance khuruuj koo-rooj exit fataHa fah-tah-hah to open yaftaHu yaf-tah-hoo will open

11_225233-ch07.indd 105 1/30/09 11:41:52 PM 106 Arabic Phrases For Dummies Going to the Movies Going to see a shariiT siinimaa’ii (sha-reet see-nee- mah-ee; movie) in a maSraH siiniima’ii (mas-rah see- nee-mah-ee; movie theater) is a very popular pastime for people in the Middle East. Here are some popular movie genres:

✓ mughaamara (moo-ghah-mah-rah; action/ adventure) ✓ maSraHiyya (mas-rah-hee-yah; comedy) ✓ draamii (drah-mee; drama) ✓ ru’aat al-baqar (roo-aht al-bah-kar; western) ✓ wathaa’iqii (wah-tha-ee-kee; documentary) ✓ rusuum al-mutaHarrika (roo-soom al-moo-tah- hah-ree-kah; cartoon)

Most of the movies shown in these maSraH siiniima’ii are actually the original versions of American films with tarjamat al-Hiiwaar (tar-jah-mat al-hee-war; subtitles).

The verb most commonly associated with going to the movies is dhahaba (za-hah-bah; to go). Using the conjugations that follow, you can say

dhahabtu ‘ilaa al-maSraH as-siiniima’ii (za-hab- too ee-lah al-mas-rah ah-see-nee-mah-ee; I went to the movie theater.) yadhhabu ‘ilaa al-maSraH as-siiniima’ii (yaz- hah-boo ee-lah al-mas-rah ah-see-nee-mah-ee; He is going to the movies.)

Table 7-1 shows the past tense of “to go”; Table 7-2 shows the present tense.

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Table 7-1 The Past Tense of the Verb dhahaba (To Go) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa dhahabtu ah-nah za-hab-too I went ‘anta dhahabta ahn-tah za-hab-tah You went (MS) ‘anti dhahabtii ahn-tee za-hab-tee You went (FS) huwa dhaaba hoo-wah He went za-hah-bah hiya dhahabat hee-yah za-hah-bat She went naHnu dhahabnaa nah-noo We went za-hab-naa ‘antum dhahabtum ahn-toom You went (MP) za-hab-toom ‘antunna ahn-too-nah za- You went (FP) dhahabtunna hab-too-nah hum dhahabuu hoom za-hah-boo They went (MP) hunna dhahabna hoo-nah They went (FP) za-hab-nah antumaa ahn-too-mah You went (dual/ dhahabtumaa za-hab-too-mah MP/FP) humaa dhahabaa hoo-mah They went za-hah-bah (dual/MP) humaa dhahabataa hoo-mah They went za-hah-bah-tah (dual/FP)

Table 7-2 The Present Tense of the Verb dhahaba (To Go) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa ‘adhhabu ah-nah az-hah-boo I am going ‘anta tadhhabu ahn-tah taz-hah-boo You are going (MS) (continued)

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Table 7-2 (continued) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anti tadhhabiina ahn-tee taz-hah- You are going bee-nah (FS) huwa yadhhabu hoo-wah yaz- He is going hah-boo hiya tadhhabu hee-yah taz-hah-boo She is going naHnu nadhhabu nah-noo We are going naz-hah-boo ‘antum ahn-toom You are going tadhhabuuna taz-hah-boo-nah (MP) ‘antunna ahn-too-nah You are going tadhhabna taz-hab-nah (FP) hum hoom yaz-hah- They are going yadhhabuuna boo-nah (MP) hunna yadhhabna hoo-nah yaz-hab-nah They are going (FP) antumaa ahn-too-mah taz- You are going tadhhabaani hah-bah-nee (dual/MP/FP) humaa hoo-mah They are going yadhhabaani yaz-hah-bah-nee (dual/MP) humaa hoo-mah They are going tadhhabaani taz-hah-bah-nee (dual/FP)

Some other helpful movie-related words and phrases are:

✓ mumathil (moo-mah-theel; actor) ✓ mumathila (moo-mah-thee-lah; actress) ✓ mudiir (moo-deer; director) ✓ mushaahid (moo-sha-heed; spectator) (MS) ✓ mushaahida (moo-sha-hee-dah; spectator) (FS) ✓ ‘anaa ‘uriidu ‘an ‘adhhab ‘ilaa al-maSraH as- siiniima’ii. (ah-nah oo-ree-doo ann az-hab ee-lah al-mas-rah ah-see-nee-mah-ee. I would like to go to the movie theater.)

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✓ mataa sayabda’u ash-shariiT? (mah-tah sah-yab- dah-oo ah-sha-reet? When does the movie begin?) ✓ ‘ay shariiT sayal’abu fii al-maSraH al-yawm? (aiy sha-reet sah-yal-ah-boo fee al-mas-rah al-yah- oum? Which movie is going to be playing today?)

Touring Religious Sites If you’re in a Middle Eastern or Arab city, be sure to check out a masjid (mas-jeed; mosque). The larg- est masaajid (mah-sah-jeed; mosques) in the Muslim world are located in Mecca and Medina, Saudi Arabia, and in Casablanca, Morocco.

A few rules to keep in mind When visiting masaajid, you must follow certain qawaa’id (rules):

✓ If you’re Muslim, you’re allowed to walk into any masjid you like; but before entering, you must remove your shoes and say the shahada (shah-hah-dah; religious prayer): laa ‘ilaaha ‘illaa allah wa muHammad rasuul allah (lah ee- lah-hah ee-lah ah-lah wah moo-hah-mad rah-sool ah-lah; There is no god but God and Muhammad is his Prophet.). ✓ If you’re non-Muslim, entry into a masjid is sometimes forbidden, whether you’re in the Middle East, the United States, or anywhere around the world. However, certain mosques, such as the masjid Hassan II in Casablanca, have designated wings that are open to both Muslims and non-Muslims. These wings are set aside more as exhibition rooms than as religious or prayer rooms, so you’re allowed to enter them, but you still must remove your Hidaa’ (hee-dah; shoes).

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The word masjid comes from the verb sajada (sah-jah-dah), which means “to prostrate” or “to kneel.” Another word for “mosque” is jaami’ (jah-meeh), which comes from the word jama’a (jah-mah-ah; to gather). So the Arabic words for “mosque” are related to what one actually does in the mosque, which is to gather in a religious setting and pray.

The Hajj One of the most popular events during the year for Muslims is the Hajj (haj), which is the pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia. The Hajj, which generally lasts for five days, takes place once a year and is actually one of the five pillars of Islam.

As soon as the Hajjaaj (hah-jaj; pilgrims) arrive in Mecca, they must shed all their worldly clothing and possessions and change into sandals and a simple ihram (eeh-ram), which basically consists of a white cloth wrapped around the body. The logic behind wearing only the ihram is that every Hajjaaj is equal before God, and because no difference exists between a king and a beggar during the Hajj, everyone must wear the same thing.

After they don the ihram, the Hajjaaj begin a ritual known as the Tawaf (tah-waf; to turn), in which they walk around the ka’ba (kah-bah), a cubelike structure located in the middle of the masjid al-Haraam (mas-jeed al-hah-ram; The Sacred Mosque of Mecca). According to the Koran and other religious texts, the ka’ba was built by the Prophet Abraham for the purpose of worship. The Hajjaaj must circle the ka’ba seven times in an anti-clockwise manner. After the Tawaf, the Hajjaaj walk to the hills of Safa and Marwah before going to the hill of Arafat, then to the city of Mina, before returning to the ka’ba for a final Tawaf.

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A man who has completed the Hajj is called al-Hajj (al-haj), and a woman who has done the Hajj is called al-Hajja (al-hah-jah).

Saudi Arabian law prohibits non-Muslims from entering Mecca.

Sporting an Athletic Side I don’t know about you, but I love playing riyaaDa (ree-yah-dah; sports), whether it’s an individual sport such as al-ghuulf (al-ghoo-lef; golf) or a team sport like kurat al-qadam (koo-rat al-qah-dam; soccer).

kurat al-qadam is one of the most popular sports among Arabic-speaking people because it’s a riyaaDa mushaahada (ree-yah-dah moo-sha-hah-dah; spectator sport). In a typical mubaara (moo-bah-rah; game), you will use the following words:

✓ fariiq (fah-reek; team) ✓ mal’ab (mah-lab; stadium) ✓ natiija (nah-tee-jah; score) ✓ fawz (fah-wez; win) ✓ khasar (kah-sar; loss) ✓ khata’ (kah-tah; foul) ✓ Hakam (hah-kam; referee) ✓ malaabis riyaaDiyya (mah-lah-bees ree-yah-dee- yah; uniforms) ✓ kura (koo-rah; ball) ✓ laa’ib (lah-eeb; player) (MS) ✓ laa’iba (lah-ee-bah; player) (FS)

Here are some other favorite sports:

✓ sibaaHa (see-bah-hah; swimming) ✓ furusiiyya (foo-roo-see-yah; horseback riding)

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✓ kurat aT-Taa’ira (koo-rat ah-tah-ee-rah; volleyball) ✓ kurat as-salla (koo-rat ah-sah-lah; basketball) ✓ kurat al-miDrab (koo-rat al-meed-rab; tennis) ✓ daraaja (dah-rah-jah; cycling) ✓ tazaHluq (tah-zah-look; skiing) ✓ tazalluj (tah-zah-looj; ice skating) ✓ jumbaaz (joo-meh-baz; gymnastics) ✓ siibaaq as-sayaara (see-bah-kah ah-sah-yah-rah; racecar driving)

One of the most common verbs used with sports and other recreational activities is la’aba (lah-ah-bah; play). Because the verb la’aba is commonly used and important, knowing how to conjugate it in both the past and the present tenses is a good idea. Tables 7-3 and 7-4 show you how.

Table 7-3 The Past Tense of the Verb la’aba (To Play) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa la’abtu ah-nah lah-ahb-too I played ‘anta la’abta ahn-tah lah-ahb-tah You played (MS) ‘anti la’abti ahn-tee lah-ahb-tee You played (FS) Huwa la’aba hoo-wah lah-ah-bah He played Hiya la’abat hee-yah lah-ah-bat She played naHnu nah-noo lah-ahb-naa We played la’abnaa ‘antum ahn-toom lah-ahb-toom You played (MP) la’abtum ‘antunna ahn-too-nah lah-ahb- You played (FP) la’abtunna too-nah Hum la’abuu hoom lah-ah-boo They played (MP)

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Form Pronunciation Translation Hunna hoo-nah lah-ahb-nah They played (FP) la’abna antumaa ahn-too-mah lah-ahb- You played (dual/ la’abtumaa too-mah MP/FP) Humaa hoo-mah lah-ah-bah They played (dual/ la’abaa MP) Humaa hoo-mah lah-ah-bah- They played (dual/ la’abataa tah FP)

Table 7-4 The Present Tense of the Verb yal’abu (To Play) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa ‘al’abu ah-nah al-ah-boo I am playing ‘anta tal’abu ahn-tah tal-ah-boo You are playing (MS) ‘anti tal’abiina ahn-tee tal-ah-bee-nah You are playing (FS) Huwa yal’abu hoo-wah yal-ah-boo He is playing Hiya tal’abu hee-yah tal-ah-boo She is playing naHnu nal’abu nah-noo nal-ah-boo We are playing ‘antum ahn-toom tal-ah-boo- You are playing (MP) tal’abuuna nah ‘antunna ahn-too-nah tal-ahb-nah You are playing (FP) tal’abna hum hoom yal-ah-boo-nah They are playing (MP) yal’abuuna hunna hoo-nah yal-ahb-nah They are playing (FP) yal’abna antumaa ahn-too-mah tal-ah- You are playing (dual/ tal’abaani bah-nee MP/FP) Humaa hoo-mah yal-ah-bah- They are playing (dual/ yal’abaani nee MP) Humaa hoo-mah tal-ah-bah-nee They are playing (dual/ tal’abaani FP)

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Use the verb la’aba or yal’abu followed by the sport or activity you’re playing. For example, you may say

‘anaa ‘al’abu kurat as-salla. (I am playing basketball.) hiya la’abat kurat al-miDrab. (She played tennis.)

Another important phrase commonly used relating to sports and other fun activities is hayyaa binaa (hah- yah bee-nah; Let’s go). You’ll often hear friends telling each other hayyaa binaa followed by the activity or location of the activity, such as hayyaa binaa ‘ilaa mal’ab kurat al-qadam (hah-yah bee-nah ee-lah mal- ahb koo-rat al-aah-dam; Let’s go to the soccer field).

The following conversation gives you some important phrases in case you want to get a friend to play kurat al-qadam with you:

Karim: hayyaa nal’ab kurat al-qadam ghadan. (hah-yah nah-lab koo-rat al-qah-dam ghah-dan. Let’s go play soccer tomorrow.) Kamal: haadhihi fikra mumtaaza. (hah-zee-hee feek-rah moom-tah-zah. That’s an excellent idea.) Karim: ‘ayy saa’a? (ay sah-ah? At what time?) Kamal: hal as-saa’a al-khaamisa tuwaafiquka? (hal ah-sah-ah al-kah-mee-sah too-wah-fee-koo- kah? Does 5:00 work for you?) Karim: na’am. as-saa’a al-khaamisa muwaafiqa. ‘ayna sa-nal’ab? (nah-am. ah-sah-ah al-kah-mee- sah moo-wah-fee-qah. eh-yeh-nah sa-nah-lab? Yes. 5:00 works for me. Where are we going to play?) Kamal: fii mal’ab al-madrasa. (fee mah-lab al- mad-rah-sah. In the school stadium.) Karim: mumtaaz! hal ‘indaka kura? (moom-tahz! hal een-dah-kah koo-rah? Excellent! Do you have a ball?)

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Kamal: na’am ‘indii kura. wa laakin laysa ‘indii malaabis riyaaDiyya. (nah-am een-dee koo-rah. wah lah-keen lah-yeh-sah een-dee mah-lah-bees ree-yah-dee-yah. Yes, I have a ball. But I don’t have any uniforms.) Karim: laa sha’na lanaa bidhaalika. lam naHtaaj bi al-malaabis riyaaDiyya. (lah sha-nah lah-nah bee-zah-lee-kah. lam nah-taj bee al-mah-lah-bees ree-yah-dee-yah. That’s not a big deal. We really don’t need uniforms.)

Going to the Beach Whether you go to the shaaTi’ (shah-teeh; beach) with your ‘aSdiqaa’ (ass-dee-qah; friends) or your ‘usra (oos-rah; family), it’s a really great place to have a fun time! Here are some useful words for the beach:

✓ malaabis as-sibaaHa (mah-lah-bees ah-see-bah- hah; bathing suit) ✓ dihaan shamsii (dee-han shah-meh-see; sunscreen) ✓ shams (shah-mes; sun) ✓ saHaab (sah-hab; cloud) ✓ muHiiT (moo-heet; ocean) ✓ miDalla (mee-dah-lah; beach umbrella) ✓ ramla (rah-meh-lah; sand) ✓ mooja (moo-jah; wave)

hayyaa binaa ‘ilaa ash-shaaTi’! (hah-yah bee-nah ee-lah ah-shah-teeh! Let’s go to the beach!)

Playing Musical Instruments No matter where you come from or what languages you speak, moosiiqaa (moo-see-qah; music) has the

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power to break down barriers and bring people closer together. Popular aalaat moosiiqiyya (ah-lat moo-see- kee-yah; musical instruments) include:

✓ biiyaano (bee-yah-noo; piano) ✓ qiithaar (kee-thar; guitar) ✓ kamanja (kah-mah-neh-jah; violin) ✓ Tabl (tah-bel; drums) ✓ fluut (feh-loot; flute) ✓ buuq (book; trumpet) ✓ saaksuufuun (sak-soo-foon; saxophone)

In order to say that someone plays a particular instrument, use the muDaari’ form of the verb yal’abu. For example yal’abu al-qiithaar means “He plays the guitar” or “He is playing the guitar”.

Middle Eastern music is one of the most popular types of music in the world. It is charac- terized by a special kind of string instrument called the ‘uud (ood) that has 12 strings and a round hollow body. The ‘uud is generally accompanied by a number of percussion instruments, such as the regular drum and the special Tabla (tah-beh-lah) that keeps the beat and adds extra flavor to the serenading of the ‘uud.

Popular Hobbies Besides riyaaDa and moosiiqaa, you may enjoy a number of other types of hobbies. Do you consider qiraa’a (kee-rah-ah; reading) a hiwaaya (hee-wah-yah; hobby)? Perhaps you’re creative and like rasm (rah- sem; drawing) or fakhaar (fah-kar; pottery)?

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Some other popular hobbies include:

✓ waraq al-la’ib (wah-rak ah-lah-eeb; cards) ✓ raqS (rah-kes; dancing) ✓ shaTranj (sha-teh-rah-nej; chess) ✓ Hiyaaka (hee-yah-kah; knitting) ✓ shi’r (shee-ar; poetry)

When you want to discuss hobbies and personal activities, you often use the verb la’aba. For example, you say la’abtu kurat al-qadam (lah-ab-too koo-rat al- qah-dam; I played soccer) or la’aba al-kamanja (lah- ah-bah al-kah-mah-neh-jah; He played the violin). Here are some other example sentences that pair activities with the verb la’aba:

✓ la’abat shaTranj. (lah-ah-bat sha-teh-rah-nej; She played chess.) ✓ la’abnaa kurat as-salla. (lah-ab-nah koo-rat ah- sah-lah; We played basketball.) ✓ la’abaa waraq al-la’ib. (lah-ah-bah wah-rak ah- lah-eeb; They played cards.) (dual/MP/FP)

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11_225233-ch07.indd 118 1/30/09 11:41:53 PM Chapter 8 When You Gotta Work

In This Chapter ▶ Finding a job that’s right for you ▶ Interacting with coworkers ▶ Using the phone

hether you’re looking for a job or just need to Wtalk with your coworkers, this chapter has the phrases for you. I also give you basic phone vocabulary and tell you how to send letters, e-mails, and faxes.

Landing a Job If you’re looking for ‘amal (ah-mal; work/job) or trying to decide what mihna (meeh-nah; profession) to pursue, this section is for you.

One of the first things to keep in mind when you go about your job search is that you need to find an ‘amal that suits your particular maSlaHaat (mas-lah- hat; interests) and mahaaraat (mah-hah-rat; skills). You may want to start your search by talking to ‘aSdiqaa’ (ass-dee-qah; friends) or asking around at your local jam’iyya (jam-ee-yah; university). Also, you’re likely to find listings in the following:

✓ jariidaat (jah-ree-dat; newspapers) ✓ ma’luumaat (mah-loo-mat; classified ads)

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As you search, make sure you find out as much as possible about a potential mustakhdim (moos-tak-deem; employer). When you’re able to secure an interview with a sharika (shah-ree-kah; company), here’s a list of things you may want to find out about your potential mustakhdim:

✓ ‘adad al-‘ummaal (ah-dad al-oo-mal; number of employees) ✓ Damaan aS-SaHHa (dah-man ah-sah-hah; health insurance) ✓ raatib (rah-teeb; salary) ✓ waqt al-‘uTla (wah-ket al-oot-lah; vacation time) ✓ ta’aaqud (tah-ah-kood; pension)

Here’s how an interview might go:

Mary: marHaban bika. tafaDDal min faDlik. (mar-hah-ban bee-kah. tah-fah-dal meen fad-leek. Welcome. Please come in.) Mark: shukran li ‘istiqbaalii. (shook-ran lee ees- teek-bah-lee. Thank you for having me.) Mary: khuz maq’ad min faDlik. (kooz mak-ad meen fad-leek. Please have a seat.) Mark: shukran. (shook-ran. Thank you.) Mary: hal turiidu ‘an tashraba shay’an? (hal too- ree-doo an tash-rah-bah shay-an? Would you like anything to drink?) Mark: maa’ min faDlik. (mah meen fad-leek. Water please.) Mary: hal ‘indaka ‘as’ila ‘an haadhihi al-waDHi- ifa? (hal een-dah-kah ass-ee-lah an hah-zee-hee al- wah-dee-fah? Do you have any questions about this position?) Mark: na’am. kam min ‘ummaal fii ash-sharika? (nah-am. kam meen oo-mal fee ah-shah-ree-kah? Yes. How many employees are in the company?)

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Mary: ‘indanaa ‘ishriin ‘ummaal wa mudiir waaHid. (een-dah-nah eesh-reen oo-mal wah moo- deer wah-heed. We have 20 employees and one director.) Mark: hal ash-sharika tuqaddim Damaan aS- SaHHa? (hal ah-shah-ree-kah too-qah-deem dah- man ah-sah-hah? Does the company provide health insurance?) Mary: na’am. nuqaddim Damaan aS-SaHha li kul muwaDHaf ba’da muddat thalaath ‘ashhur fii al-’amal. (nah-am. noo-qah-deem dah-man ah- sah-hah lee kool moo-wah-daf bah-dah moo-dat thah-lath ash-hoor fee al-ah-mal. Yes. We provide health insurance to every employee after a period of three months on the job.) Mark: raai’! wa hal hunaaka waqt li al-’uTla? (rah-eeh! wah hal hoo-nah-kah wah-ket lee al-oot- lah? Great! And is there any vacation time?) Mary: Taba’an. hunaaka ‘ishriin yawm li al- ’uTla fii as-sana al-’uulaa. wa fii as-sana ath- thaaniya hunaaka thalaathiin yawm li al-’uTla. (tah-bah-an. hoo-nah-kah eesh-reen yah-oum lee al- oot-lah fee ah-sah-nah al-oo-lah. wah fee ah-sah-nah ah-thah-nee-yah hoo-nah-kah thah-lah-theen yah- oum lee al-oot-lah. Of course. There are 20 days for vacation during the first year. And then during the second year there are 30 vacation days.) Mark: shukran jaziilan li haadhihi al-ma’luumaat. (shook-ran jah-zee-lan lee hah-zee-hee al-mah-loo- mat. Thank you very much for this information.)

Words to Know ‘istiqbaal ess-teek-bal host maq’ad mak-ad seat ‘as’ila ass-ee-lah questions continued

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Words to Know (continued) waDHiifa wah-dee-fah position taqdiim tak-deem offering tuqaddim too-qah-deem to offer ‘ashhur ash-hoor months ma’luuma mah-loo-mah information (S) ma’luumaat mah-loo-mat information (P)

Managing the Office Environment The maktab is an essential part of modern life. In most Arabic-speaking and Muslim countries, ‘ummaal (ooh-mal; workers) work from al-‘ithnayn (al-eeth-nah- yen; Monday) until al-jumu’a (al-joo-moo-ah; Friday). Most ‘ummaal follow a standard as-saa’a at-taasi’a ‘ilaa al-khaamisa (ah-sah-ah ah-tah-see-ah ee-lah al- kah-mee-sah; 9:00 to 5:00) schedule for workdays.

Although most makaatib (mah-kah-teeb; offices) around the world give their ‘ummaaal time for ghadaa’ (ghah-dah; lunch), the duration depends on the employer and the country. For example, in the United States, it’s not uncommon for an ‘aamil (ah-meel; worker) to eat her ghadaa’ while sitting at her maktab (mak-tab; desk). On the other hand, in most Middle Eastern countries, an ‘aamil gets two hours for ghadaa’ and is encouraged to eat his ghadaa’ at his manzil (man-zeel; house) with his ‘usra (oos-rah; family).

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Here are some key words and terms to help you navigate the workplace:

✓ ‘amal (ah-mal; work/job) ✓ mihna (meeh-nah; profession) ✓ sharika (shah-ree-kah; company) ✓ sharika kabiira (shah-ree-kah kah-bee-rah; large company) ✓ sharika Saghiira (shah-ree-kah sah-ghee-rah; small company) ✓ ma’mal (mah-mal; factory) ✓ zubuun (zoo-boon; client) ✓ zabaa’in (zah-bah-een; clients)

You can choose from many different kinds of sharikaat (shah-ree-kat; companies) to work for, including a maSraf (mas-raf; bank), a sharikat al-Hisaab (shah- ree-kat al-hee-sab; accounting firm), and a sharikat al- qaanuun (shah-ree-kat al-qah-noon; law firm). You also have many choices when it comes to mihan (mee-han; professions). Here are some popular mihan:

✓ maSrafii (mas-rah-fee; banker) (M) ✓ maSrafiiya (mas-rah-fee-yah; banker) (F) ✓ rajul al-‘a’maal (rah-jool al-ah-mal; businessman) ✓ ‘imra’at al-‘a’maal (eem-rah-at al-ah-mal; businesswoman) ✓ muHaamiiy (moo-hah-mee; lawyer) ✓ shurTa (shoor-tah; police officer) ✓ rajul al-‘iTfaa’ (rah-jool al-eet-fah; firefighter)

Most sharikaat have a lot of ‘ummaal with different responsibilities, and most ‘ummaal find themselves in daa’iraat (dah-ee-rat; divisions/groups/departments) within the sharika. Here are some of the common daa’iraat you may find in a sharika:

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✓ daa’irat al-Hisaab (dah-ee-rat al-hee-sab; accounting department) ✓ daa’irat al-‘aswaaq (dah-ee-rat al-as-wak; marketing department) ✓ daa’irat al-qaanuun (dah-ee-rat al-qah-noon; legal department) ✓ daa’irat al-’ummaal (dah-ee-rat al-ooh-mal; human resources department) ✓ daa’irat az-zabaa’in (dah-ee-rat ah-zah-bah-een; customer service department)

Interacting with your colleagues Unless you’re in a mihna that doesn’t require you to interact with people face-to-face, you need to be able to get along with your zumalaa’ (zoo-mah-lah; colleagues) at the maktab:

✓ zamiil (zah-meel; colleague) (MS) ✓ zamiila (zah-mee-lah; colleague) (FS) ✓ zumalaat (zoo-mah-lat; colleagues) (FP) ✓ mudiir (moo-deer; director) (MS) ✓ mudiira (moo-dee-rah; director) (FS) ✓ mudiiruun (moo-dee-roon; directors) (MP) ✓ mudiiraat (moo-dee-rat; directors) (FP) ✓ ra’iis (rah-ees; president) (MS) ✓ ra’iisa (rah-ee-sah; president) (FS) ✓ ru’asaa’ (roo-ah-sah; presidents) (MP) ✓ ru’asaat (roo-ah-sat; presidents) (FP)

You can address people you work with in a number of different ways, such as based on rank, age, or gender. These categorizations may seem discriminatory in an American sense, but these terms actually carry the utmost respect for the person being referenced:

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✓ Use sayyidii (sah-yee-dee; sir) to address the mudiir or someone with a higher rank than you. ✓ Use sayiidatii (sah-yee-dah-tee; madam) to address the mudiira or ra’iisa. ✓ Use Sadiiqii (sah-dee-kee; friend) to address a male colleague. ✓ Use Sadiiqatii (sah-dee-qah-tee; friend) to address a zamiila. ✓ Use al-‘akh (al-ak; brother) to address a male coworker or colleague. ✓ Use al-‘ukht (al-oo-ket; sister) to address a zamiila.

In Arabic culture, it’s okay to address coworkers or people close to you as ‘akh (brother) or ‘ukht (sister) even though they may not be related to you.

Here are some phrases to help you interact cordially and politely with your zumalaa’:

✓ hal turiid musaa’ada? (hal too-reed moo-sah-ah- dah; Do you need help?) (M) ✓ hal turiidiina musaa’ada? (hal too-ree-dee-nah moo-sah-ah-dah; Do you need help?) (F) ✓ hal yumkin ‘an ‘usaa’iduka bii dhaalika? (hal yoom-keen an oo-sah-ee-doo-kah bee zah-lee-kah; May I help you with that?) (M) ✓ hal yumkin ‘an ‘usaa’idukii bii dhaalika? (hal yoom-keen an oo-sah-ee-doo-kee bee zah-lee-kah; May I help you with that?) (F) ✓ sa ‘adhhab ‘ilaa al-maT’am. hal turiid shay’an? (sah az-hab ee-lah al-mat-ham. hal too-reed shay- an; I’m going to the cafeteria. Do you want anything?) (M) ✓ sa ‘adhhab ‘ilaa al-maT’am. hal turiidiina shay’an? (sah az-hab ee-lah al-mat-ham. hal too- ree-dee-nah shay-an; I’m going to the cafeteria. Do you want anything?) (F)

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✓ ‘indanaa ‘ijtimaa’ fii khams daqaa’iq. (een-dah- nah eej-tee-mah fee kah-mes dah-qah-eek; We have a meeting in five minutes.) ✓ az-zabuun saya’tii fii saa’a. (ah-zah-boon sah- yah-tee fee sah-ah; The client will arrive in one hour.) ✓ hal waSaluka bariidii al-‘iliktroonii? (hal wah- sah-loo-kah bah-ree-dee al-ee-leek-troo-nee; Did you get my e-mail?) ✓ hal waSaluka khabaarii al-haatifiiy? (hal wah- sah-loo-kah kah-bah-ree al-hah-tee-fee; Did you get my phone message?) ✓ hal ‘indaka qalam? (hal een-dah-kah qah-lam; Do you have a pen?) (M) ✓ hal ‘indukii qalam? (hal een-doo-kee qah-lam; Do you have a pen?) (F)

Writing reports is something most people have to do at the office. Here’s a conversation you might have with your colleagues:

Omar: hal katabta at-taqriir? (hal kah-tab-tah ah- tak-reer? Did you write the report?) Samir: ‘anaa katabtu niSf at-taqriir, wa laakin ‘uriidu musaa’adatuka li kitaabatuh. (ah-nah kah-tab-too nee-sef ah-tak-reer, wah lah-keen oo- ree-doo moo-sah-ah-dah-too-kah lee kee-tah-bah- tooh. I wrote half of the report, but I need your help to finish writing it.) Omar: Tayyib, hayyaa binaa li al-’amaal. ‘ayna turiidu ‘an na’mal? (tah-yeeb, hay-yah bee-nah lee al-ah-mal. ay-nah too-ree-doo an nah-mal? Okay, let’s get to work. Where would you like us to work?) Samir: hayya binaa ‘ilaa qaa’at al-’ijtimaa’. (hay- yah bee-nah ee-lah qah-at al-eej-tee-mah. Let’s go to the conference room.)

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Omar: hal turiidu haadhihi aS-Suura fii bidaayat ‘aw nihaayat at-taqriir? (hal too-ree-doo hah-zee- hee ah-soo-rah fee bee-dah-yat aw nee-hah-yat ah- tak-reer? Do you want this illustration in the beginning or end of the report?) Samir: ‘aDHunnu fii bidaayat at-taqriir ‘aHsan. (ah-zoo-noo fee bee-dah-yat ah-tak-reer ah-san. I believe in the beginning of the report is better.) Omar: hal naziid SafHa ‘ukhraa ‘aw haadhaa kaafiiyan? (hal nah-zeed saf-hah ook-rah aw hah- zah kah-fee-yan? Should we add another page or is this enough?) Samir: haadhaa kaafiyan li al-’aan. (hah-zah kah-fee-yan lee al-an. This is enough for now.) Omar: mataa turiidu ‘an nufarriqa haadhaa at- taqriir? (mah-tah too-ree-doo an noo-fah-ree-qah hah-zah ah-tak-reer? When would you like to distribute this report?) Samir: ‘indanaa ‘ijtimaa’ fii saa’a. yajib ‘an yakuun at-taqriir jaahiz li al-’ijtimaa’. (een-dah- nah eej-tee-mah fee sah-ah. yah-jeeb an yah-koon ah-tak-reer jah-heez lee al-eej-tee-mah. We have a meeting in one hour. The report must be ready in time for the meeting.) Omar: sa yakuun jaahiz fii niSf saa’a. kam min nuskha yajib ‘an naTba’? (Sah yah-koon jah-heez fee nee-sef sah-ah. kam meen noos-kah yah-jeeb an nat-bah? It’ll be ready in half an hour. How many copies do we need to print?) Samir: sa yakuun ‘ashra mumathiliin fii al- ’ijtimaa’, wa laakin ‘iTba’ khamsat nuskhaat ‘iDHaafiyya. (sah yah-koon ash-rah moo-mah- thee-leen fee al-eej-tee-mah, wah lah-keen eet-bah kam-sat noos-kat ee-dah-fee-yah. There will be ten representatives at the meeting, but print five additional copies just in case.) Omar: fawran. hal hunaaka shay’un ‘aakhar? (faw-ran. hal hoo-nah-kah shay-oon ah-kar? Right away. Is there anything else?)

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Samir: na’am. ‘i’lam kaatibatii min faDlik ‘an ta’khudh mukaalamat al-haatifiyya li ‘annanii sa ‘akuun fii al-’ijtimaa’. (nah-am. eeh-lam kah- tee-bah-tee meen fad-leek an tah-kooz moo-kah- lah-mat al-hah-tee-fee-yah lee ah-nah-nee sah ah-koon fee al-eej-tee-mah. Yes. Please inform my assistant to hold all my calls because I’ll be at the meeting.) Omar: sa ‘aquulu lihaa dhallika al-’aan. (sah ah- koo-loo lee-hah zah-lee-kah al-an. I will tell her that right now.)

Words to Know taqriir tak-reer report taqriiraat tak-ree-rat reports niSf nee-sef half musaa’ada moo-sah-ah-dah help ghurfa ghoor-fah room ‘ijtimaa’ eej-tee-mah meeting/ conference Suwar soo-war pictures bidaaya bee-dah-yah beginning nihaaya nee-hah-yah ending yaziid yah-zeed to add farraqa fah-rah-qah distribute jaahiz jah-heez ready (M) jaahiza jah-hee-zah ready (F)

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Taba’a tah-bah-ah to print nuskhaat noos-kat copies mumathil moo-mah- representative (M) theel mumathila moo-mah- representative (F) thee-lah

mumathiliin moo-mah- representatives (MP) thee-leen mumathilaat moo-mah- representatives (FP) thee-lat ‘iDHaafiy ee-zah-fee additional (M) ‘iDHaafiyya ee-zah-fee- additional (F) yah

Giving orders The imperative verb form, also known as the command form, is used to give orders or directions. It’s an important verb to know in the workplace because that’s where you’re usually told what to do and where you tell others what to do. The imperative structure is fairly straightforward. This section shares some quick tips to allow you to master the imperative form.

First, because the imperative is a command form, you can use it only with present personal pronouns such as ‘anta (an-tah; you) (M) and ‘anti (an-tee; you) (F). You can’t use the imperative with absent personal pronouns such as huwa (hoo-wah; him) because you can’t give an order to someone who isn’t present. The following is a list of the personal pronouns to use with the imperative:

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ߜ ‘anta (an-tah; you) (MS) ߜ ‘anti (an-tee; you) (FS) ߜ ‘antum (an-toom; you) (MP) ߜ ‘antunna (an-too-nah; you) (FP) ߜ ‘antumaa (an-too-mah; you) (dual)

Second, the imperative form is nothing but a derived form of the regular verb in the maaDii (mah-dee; past) and the MuDaari’ (moo-dah-reeh; present) tenses. The following is a list of the most common imperative verbs:

ߜ ‘uktub (ook-toob; write) ߜ ‘iqra (eek-rah; read) ߜ ‘unDHur (oon-zoor; look) ߜ ‘a’id (ah-eed; repeat) ߜ qull (kool; say) ߜ ‘u’kul (ooh-kool; eat) ߜ takallam (tah-kah-lam; speak) ߜ qif (keef; stop) ߜ taHarrak (tah-hah-rak; move)

One of the more important verb command forms is the verb kataba (kah-tah-bah; to write). Table 8-1 shows the imperative (command) form of the verb kataba.

Table 8-1 Imperative Form of the Verb kataba Pronoun Imperative Pronunciation Translation ‘anta (you/MS) ‘uktub ook-toob write (MS) ‘anti (you/FS) ‘uktubii ook-too-bee write (FS) ‘antum (you/ ‘uktubuu ook-too-boo write (MP) MP) ‘antunna (you/ ‘uktubna ook-toob-nah write (FP) FP) ‘antumaa (dual) ‘uktubaani ook-too-bah-nee write (dual)

12_225233-ch08.indd 130 1/30/09 11:42:12 PM Chapter 8: When You Gotta Work 131 Supplying your office In order to function properly and efficiently at the maktab, you need a number of work-related items. Here are some supplies you can expect to find at the maktab:

✓ kursiiy (koor-see; chair) ✓ maktab (mak-tab; desk) ✓ ‘aalat al-Hisaab (ah-lat al-hee-sab; computer) ✓ haatif (hah-teef; telephone) ✓ ‘aalat al-faks (ah-lat al-fah-kes; fax machine) ✓ maTba’a (mat-bah-ah; printer) ✓ ‘aalat al-Tibaa’ (ah-lat ah-tee-bah; photocopier)

Besides ‘aalaat (ah-lat; machines) and heavy furniture, you also need smaller tools:

✓ qalam jaaf (qah-lam jaf; pen) ✓ qalam ar-rasaas (qah-lam ah-rah-sas; pencil) ✓ mimHaat (meem-hat; eraser) ✓ kitaab (kee-tab; book) ✓ daftar (daf-tar; notebook) ✓ ‘awraaq (aw-rak; papers) ✓ mishbak ‘awraaq (meesh-bak aw-rak; paper clip) ✓ Dammat ‘awraaq (dah-mat aw-rak; stapler) ✓ lisqah (lee-skah; glue) ✓ skooch (seh-koo-tech; tape)

If you can’t find a daftar or lisqah, ask a zumalaa’ if you can borrow one. Here’s how you ask a colleague a question, depending on whether you’re speaking to a man or a woman:

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✓ hal ‘indakii daftar? (hal een-dah-kee daf-tar; Do you have a notebook?) (F) ✓ hal ‘indaka lisqah? (hal een-dah-kah lee-skah; Do you have glue?) (M) ✓ hal ‘indakum skooch? (hal een-dah-koom seh- koo-tech; Do you have tape?) (MP) ✓ hal ‘indahu qalam? (hal een-dah-hoo qah-lam; Does he have a pen?)

Picking Up the Phone The haatif (haa-teef; phone) is an important tool for the office. In this section, I explain how to properly begin and end a mukaalama haatifiyya (moo-kaah-la- mah haa-teef-eeya; phone conversation), how to make plans over the phone, and how to leave a proper phone message in Arabic.

Dialing up the basics Before you can talk on the haatif, you need to be familiar with the following basic terminology:

✓ haatif ‘aam (haa-teef aahm; public phone) ✓ haatif selulayr (haa-teef seh-loo-layer; cellphone) ✓ raqm al-haatif (rak-em al-haa-teef; phone number) ✓ biTaaqat al-haatif (bee-taa-kaht al-haa-teef; phone card) ✓ mukaalama haatifiyya (moo-kaah-la-mah haa- teef-eeya; phone conversation)

Beginning a phone conversation You can begin a phone conversation in a number of ways. The most common, whether you’re the caller or the person answering the phone, is to simply say allo (all-low; hello).

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It’s proper etiquette to state your name right after the person who picks up the phone says allo, particularly if you don’t know that person. If you’re the caller, you may say ‘anaa (an-nah; I am) followed by your name. Alternatively, you may say haadhaa (M) / haadhihi (F) (haa-zaah / haa-zee-hee; this is) followed by your name. A familiar phrase you can also use after you say allo is ‘as-salaamu ‘alaykum (ass-sa-laam-ou a-lai- koum; hello) or ‘ahlan wa sahlan (ahel-lan wah sahel- lan; hi). Flip to Chapter 4 for more on greetings and making small talk.

Asking to speak to someone Sometimes, a person other than the one you want to talk to answers the phone. A common phrase to help you ask for the person you called to speak with is

hal (insert name here) hunaa? (hal [name] hoo- naah), which means “Is (name) here?”

Alternatively you can also use the personal pronouns huwa (if the person you’re looking for is a man) or hiya (in the case of a woman) instead of using the person’s name.

Making business appointments If you need to set up a maou’id (maw-oo-eed; appointment) over the phone, the following conversation will give you some good phrases:

Susan: allo. (all-low. Hello.) Katiba: allo. sharikat rialto. daqiiqa min faDlik? (all-low. shah-ree-kaht ree-all-toh. dah-kee-qah meen fad-leek? Hello. Rialto Inc. Can you wait one minute please?) Susan: Tab’an. (tah-bah-’an. Of course.) Katiba: ‘afwan li-ta’akhur. kayfa ‘usaa’iduk? (ah-feh-wan lee-tah-ah-khur. kay-fah oo-saa-ee-

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duk? Sorry to keep you waiting. How may I help you?) Susan: ‘uriidu ‘an ‘atakallam ma’a sayyid ‘aHmad. (oo-ree-doo ann ah-tah-kah-llam ma-ah sah-yed ah-mad. I would like to speak with Mr. Ahmed.) Katiba: sayyid ‘aHmad mashghul. huwa fii ‘ijtimaa’. (sah-yed ah-mad mash-ghool. hoo-wah fee eej-tee-maah. Mr. Ahmed is busy. He is in a meeting.) Susan: mataa sa-yakun mawjood? (mah-taah sah- yah-koon maw-juud? When will he be available?) Katiba: ayy daqiiqa. (ay dah-kee-qah. Any minute now.) Susan: shukran jaziilan. sa-’ab-qaa fii al-khat. (shook-ran ja-zee-lan. sa-ah-bek-aah fee al-khah-t. Thank you very much. I’ll stay on the line.)

Words to Know maou’id maw-oo-eed appointment ‘ijtimaa’ eej-tee-maah meeting sayyid say-yehd Mr./Sir sayyida say-yee-dah Mrs./Ms. ra’iis rah-ees president katiba kah-tee-bah secretary/ assistant sharika shah-ree-kah company ‘usaa’iduk oo-saa-ee-duk help you ‘uriidu oo-ree-doo would like mashghul mash-ghool busy

12_225233-ch08.indd 134 1/30/09 11:42:12 PM Chapter 8: When You Gotta Work 135 Dealing with voice mail When you leave a voice mail khabaran (khah-bah-ran; message) on someone’s haatif, you want to make sure to include the following:

✓ Your ‘ism (ee-seh-m; name) ✓ The waqt al-mukaalama (wah-ket al-muh-kaah- lah-mah; time of the call) ✓ Your raqm al-haatif (rah-kem al-haa-teef; phone number or callback number) ✓ The ahsan waqt li al-mukaalama (ah-sahn wah- ket lee al-muh-kaah-lah-mah; best times you’re available to talk)

A greeting message that you might hear on someone’s phone could go like this:

‘ahlan, haadhaa kareem. ‘anaa lastu hunaa wa lakin ‘idhaa takallamta ‘ismuka wa raqamuka sa-’ukallimuk fii ‘asra’ waqt ahel-lan, hah-zah kah-reem. ah-nah las-too hoo- nah wah lah-keen ee-zah tah-kah-lam-tah ees-moo- kah wah rah-qah-moo-kah sah-oo-kah-lee-mook fee ass-rah wah-ket. Hi, this is Karim. I’m not in right now, but if you leave your name and number, I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.

Here’s the message you might leave:

‘ahlan wa sahlan karim. haadhihi selma. as- saa’a al-waaHida wa an-niSf yawm al-khamiis. khaabirnii min faDlik ‘inda wuSuulika bi haadha al-khabar ba’ada as-saa’a al-khaamisa. raqmii Sifr waaHid ithnayn thalaatha. shukran! ahel-lan wah sahel-lan kah-reem. haa-zee-hee selma. ass-saa-ah al-waa-hee-dah wa-ann-nee-sef ya-woom al-kha-mees. khaa-bir-nee meen fahd-lik inn-dah wu-soo-li-kah bee haa-zaah al-khah-bar bah-dah as-saa-ah al-khaa-mee-sah. rak-mee see- fer waa-hid ith-nay-en tha-laah-thah. shook-ran!

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Hi Karim. This is Selma. It’s 1:30 in the afternoon on Thursday. Please give me a call back when you get this message anytime after 5:00. My number is 0123. Thanks!

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In This Chapter ▶ Taking to the skies ▶ Catching taxis, buses, and trains ▶ Asking for directions

hen it comes to getting around the block, the Wcity, or the world, you have a lot of different modes of naql (nah-kel; transportation) to choose from. In this chapter, I tell you not only how to use all major transportation methods but also how to navigate a Middle Eastern city and ask directions.

Traveling by Plane One of the most common methods of naql is flying in a Taa’ira (tah-ee-rah; airplane). Chances are if you’re in North America or Europe and want to go to the Middle East, you’ll take a Taa’ira.

Making reservations The first step in air travel is making a Hajz (haj-z; reservation) and buying a biTaaqat as-safar (bee-tah- kaht ah-sah-far; plane ticket). You may purchase your

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biTaaqat as-safar by visiting your wakiil safariyaat (wah-keel sah-fah-ree-yat; travel agent) or by going online. The following conversation is one you might have with your travel agent:

Sophia: ‘ahlan wa sahlan ‘aHmed. haadhihi sofia. (ahel-an wah sa-hel-an ah-med. hah-zee-hee so-fee-ah. Hi Ahmed. This is Sophia.) Ahmed: ‘ahlan sofia. kayfa yumkin ‘an ‘usaa’iduki? (ahel-an so-fee-ah. kay-fah yoom-keen ann oo-sah-ee- doo-kee? Hi Sophia. How may I help you?) Sophia: ‘uriidu ‘an ‘adhhab ‘ilaa ‘ad-daar ‘al- bayDaa’ ma’a ‘ummii li al-’uTla. (oo-ree-doo an az-hab ee-lah ah-dar al-bay-dah mah-ah oo-mee lee al-oot-lah. I would like to go to Casablanca for the holidays with my mother.) Ahmed: raa’i’! haadhihi fikra mumtaaza. wa mataa turiidaani ‘an tadhabaani? (rah-eeh! hah- zee-hee feek-rah moom-tah-zah. wah mah-tah too- ree-dah-nee an taz-hah-bah-nee? Excellent! That’s a great idea. And when would you like to go?) Sophia: nuriidu ‘an nadhhab yawm as-sabt. (noo-ree-doo an naz-hab yah-oum ah-sabt. We would like to go on Saturday.) Ahmed: kwayyis. ma’a ‘ay saa’a? (kuh-wah-yees. mah-ah ay sah-ah? Okay. At what time would you like to leave?) Sophia: hal ‘indaka Tayaraan ma’a ‘as-saa’a al- khaamisa? ( hal een-dah-kah tay-yah-ran mah-ah ah-sah-ah al-kah-mee-sah? Do you have any flights at 5:00?) Ahmed: na’am. (nah-am. Yes.) Sophia: Tayyib. sana’khudh biTaaqatayn min faDlik. (tah-yeeb. sah-nah-kooz bee-tah-kah-tayn meen fad-leek. Good. We’ll take two tickets please.) Ahmed: hal turiidaani maqaa’id ‘amaama ‘an- naafida ‘aw bayna al-maqaa’id? (hal too-ree-dah- nee mah-qah-eed ah-mah-mah ah-nah-fee-dah ah-ou bay-nah al-mah-qah-eed? Would you like window or aisle seats?)

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Sophia: maqaa’id ‘amaama ‘an-naafida min faDlik. (mah-qah-eed ah-mah-mah ah-nah-fee-dah meen fad-leek. Window seats please.) Ahmed: ‘indii biTaaqatayn li maqaa’id ‘amaama ‘an-naafida li Tayaarin li daar al-bayDaa’ yawm as-sabt ma’a ‘as-saa’a al-khaamisa. (een-dee bee- tah-kah-tayn lee mah-qah-eed ah-mah-mah ah-nah- fee-dah lee tah-yah-reen lee dar al-bay-dah ya-oum ah-sah-bet ma-ah ah-sah-ah al-kah-mee-sah. So I have two tickets for window seats for a flight to Casablanca on Saturday at 5:00.) Sophia: mumtaaz! (moom-taz! Excellent!) Ahmed: riHla sa’eeda! (reeh-lah sah-ee-dah! Have a nice trip!)

Words to Know ‘uTla oot-lah holiday/ vacation biTaaqa bee-tah-kah ticket biTaaqatayn bee-tah-kah-tayn 2 tickets biTaaqaat bee-tah-kaht tickets (3 or more) Tayaraan tah-yah-ran flight maq’ad mak-had seat maqaa’id mah-qah-eed seats (3 or more) bayna al- bay-nah al-mah- aisle maqaa’id qah-eed seat(s) continued

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Words to Know (continued) maq’ad an- mak-had ah-nah- window seat naafida fee-dah riHla reeh-lah voyage safar sah-far trip musaafir moo-sah-feer traveler (M) mussafira moo-sah-fee-rah traveler (F) musaafiruun moo-sah-fee-ruun travelers (M) musaafiraat moo-sah-fee-rat travelers (F)

Getting some legwork out of the verb “to travel” If there’s one verb you need to be familiar with relating to travel, it’s the verb saafara (sah-fah-rah; to travel). Even though saafara has four consonants instead of the usual three, it’s nevertheless considered to be a regular verb because the fourth consonant, the ‘alif, is actually a consonant that acts as a long vowel elongating the siin. (For more on regular verbs, flip to Chapter 2.)

Use the form yusaafiru to conjugate “traveling” in the present tense. Table 9-1 shows you how:

Table 9-1 The Present Tense of the Verb saafara (To Travel) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa ‘usaafiru ah-nah oo-sah- I am traveling fee-roo

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Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anta tusaafiru ahn-tah too-sah- You are traveling fee-roo (MS) ‘anti tusaafiriina ahn-tee too-sah- You are travel- fee-ree-nah ing (FS) huwa yusaafiru hoo-wah yoo- He is traveling sah-fee-roo hiya tusaafiru hee-yah too- She is traveling sah-fee-roo naHnu nussafiru nah-noo noo- We are traveling sah-fee-roo ‘antum tusaafiruuna ahn-toom too- You are travel- sah-fee-roo-nah ing (MP) ‘antunna tusaafirna ahn-too-nah You are travel- too-sah-feer- ing (FP) nah hum yusaafiruuna hoom yoo-sah- They are travel- fee-roo-nah ing (MP) hunna yusaafirna hoo-nah yoo- They are travel- sah-feer-nah ing (FP) antumaa tusaafiraani ahn-too-mah You are traveling too-sah-fee-rah- (dual/MP/FP) nee humaa yusaafiraani hoo-mah yoo- They are travel- sah-fee-rah-nee ing (dual/MP) humaa tusaafiraani hoo-mah too- They are travel- sah-fee-rah-nee ing (dual/FP)

Registering at the airport With a biTaaqat as-safar, you’re ready to head off to the maTaar (mah-tar; airport) and board the Taa’ira. But before you actually get on the Taa’ira, you need to take care of a few logistical things. First, you must

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present your jawaaz as-safar (jah-waz ah-sah-far; passport) and your biTaaqat as-safar at the airport tasjiil (tass-jeel; registration) desk, which is located in the maHaTTat al-khuTuut al-jawwiya (mah-hah-tah al- koo-toot al-jah-wee-yah; airport terminal).

Second, you must also answer some ‘as’ila (ass-ee-lah; questions) about your safar and your ‘amti’a (am-tee- ah; luggage):

✓ kam min ‘amti’a satusajjiliina? (kam meen am- tee-ah sah-too-sah-jee-lee-nah? How many pieces of luggage are you going to register?) ✓ hal naDHamti al-’amti’a binafsuki? (hal nah- zam-tee al-am-tee-ah bee-naf-soo-kee? Did you pack your bags by yourself?) ✓ hal kul shay’ fii al-’amti’a milkuki? (hal kool shay fee al-am-tee-ah meel-koo-kee? Is everything in the bags yours?) ✓ hal kaanat al-’amti’a ma’akii fii kul al-waqt? (hal kah-nat al-am-tee-ah mah-ah-kee fee kool al- wah-ket? Have you had the bags in your posses- sion at all times?)

Words to Know ‘amti’a am-tee-ah luggage shanTa shan-tah suitcase shanTatayn shan-tah-tayn two suitcases miHfaDHa meeh-fah-dah briefcase yusajjilu yoo-sah-jee-loo to register naDHama nah-zah-mah to organize ta’shiira tah-shee-rah visa madkhal mad-kal gate

13_225233-ch09.indd 142 1/30/09 11:42:33 PM Chapter 9: I Get Around: Transportation 143 Boarding the plane So you’re ready to board the Taa’ira! After you check your ‘amti’a and present your biTaaqat as-safar and your jawaaz as-safar to the airline attendant, be sure to follow all ta’liimaat (tah-lee-mat; instructions) carefully.

When you reach the madkhal (mad-kal; gate) and board the Taa’ira, present your biTaaqat as-safar to the muwaafiq aT-Taa’ira (moo-wah-feek ah-tah-ee-rah; flight attendant), who will show you your maq’ad (mak-had; seat). The following terms are related to the Taa’ira and your flight:

✓ raakib (rah-keeb; passenger) ✓ rukkaab (roo-kab; passengers) ✓ muwaafiq (moo-wah-feek; attendant) (M) ✓ muwaafiqa (moo-wah-fee-qah; attendant) (F) ✓ Tayyaar (tah-yar; pilot) (M) ✓ Tayyaara (tah-yah-rah; pilot) (F) ✓ ghurfat al-qiyaada (ghoor-fat al-kee-yah-dah; cockpit) ✓ mirHaad (meer-had; bathroom) ✓ mirHaad mashghuul (meer-had mash-ghool; bathroom occupied) ✓ ‘araba fii ‘a’laa (ah-rah-bah fee ah-lah; overhead compartment) ✓ qism al-‘awwal (kee-sem al-ah-wal; first class) ✓ qism al-‘a’maal (kee-sem al-ah-mal; business class) ✓ qism ‘iqtiSaadii (kee-sem eek-tee-sah-dee; “econ- omy” class) ✓ sur’a (soor-ah; speed) ✓ ‘irtifaa’ (eer-tee-fah; altitude) ✓ ‘inTilaaq (een-tee-lak; departure) ✓ wuSuul (woo-sool; arrival)

13_225233-ch09.indd 143 1/30/09 11:42:33 PM 144 Arabic Phrases For Dummies A brief departure on the verb “to arrive” A helpful verb to know when you’re traveling is waSala (wah-sah-lah; to arrive). (You can also use the verb waSala to express “to land” or “to come.”) Even though waSala has three consonants and therefore should fall into the mold of regular verb forms, it’s nevertheless classified as an irregular verb because it includes the initial consonant waaw. Verbs with initial waaw are classified as irregular because their present tense forms are different than the regular present tense verb forms. As a result, whereas the past tense of waSala follows a regular pattern, the present does not. You need to use the irregular form yaSilu to conjugate “arriving” in the present tense. Table 9-2 shows you how:

Table 9-2 The Present Tense of the Verb waSala (To Arrive) Form Pronunciation Translation ‘anaa ‘aSilu ah-nah ah-see-loo I am arriving ‘anta taSilu ahn-tah tah-see- You are arriv- loo ing (MS) ‘anti taSiliina ahn-tee tah-see- You are arriv- lee-nah ing (FS) huwa yaSilu hoo-wah yah-see- He is arriving loo hiya taSilu hee-yah tah-see- She is arriving loo naHnu naSilu nah-noo nah-see- We are arriving loo ‘antum taSiluuna ahn-toom tah-see- You are arriv- loo-nah ing (MP) ‘antunna taSilna ahn-too-nah tah- You are arriv- seel-nah ing (FP)

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Form Pronunciation Translation hum yaSiluuna hoom yah-see- They are arriving loo-nah (MP) hunna yaSilna hoo-nah yah-seel- They are arriv- nah ing (FP) antumaa taSilaani ahn-too-mah tah- You are arriving see-lah-nee (dual/MP/FP) humaa yaSilaani hoo-mah yah-see- They are arriving lah-nee (dual/MP) humaa taSilaani hoo-mah tah-see- They are arriving lah-nee (dual/FP)

Going through immigration and customs When your Taa’ira lands and you arrive at your chosen destination, it’s time to deal with the hijra (heej-rah; immigration) and diwaana (dee-wah-nah; customs) officials. In recent years, airports have established more stringent requirements on musaafiruun (moo-sah-fee- ruun; travelers), so be prepared to answer a number of ‘as’ila regarding the details and purpose of your safar. Here are some common questions a hijra or diwaana official may ask you:

✓ maa ‘ismuk? (mah ees-mook; What’s your name?) ✓ kam ‘umruk? (kam um-rook; How old are you?) ✓ ‘ayna taskun? (eh-yeh-nah tass-koon; Where do you live?) ✓ maa hiya mihnatuk? (mah hee-yah meeh-nah- took; What do you do?) ✓ kam muddat safaruk? (kam moo-dat sah-fah- rook; How long is your trip?) ✓ maa hadaf safaruk? (mah hah-daf sah-fah-rook; What’s the purpose of your trip?)

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✓ ‘ayna sataskun li muddat as-safar? (eh-yeh-nah sah-tass-koon lee moo-dat ah-sah-far; Where will you be staying during the trip?) ✓ hal tusaafir biwaHdik? (hal too-sah-feer bee- wah-deek; Are you traveling alone?)

Provide clear and accurate answers to these questions. Providing false statements to an official from hijra or diwaana is a serious offense, so make sure you’re truthful throughout the questioning.

If you’re visiting a Muslim country, check with your travel agent or consular official about restrictions certain countries may have regarding bringing particular items into the country. For example, if you’re traveling to Saudi Arabia, you can’t bring alcohol with you into the country; and if you’re a woman, you may have to wear specific clothing, such as the Hijaab (hee-jab; veil), in order to comply with local religious laws. You want to be certain you are aware of all the rules and laws before you face someone from hijra or diwaana.

Words to Know jinsiyya jeen-see-yah nationality sanat al- sah-nat al-mee- date of birth miilaad lad ‘iid al-miilaad eed al-mee-lad birthday hadaf hah-daf purpose/goal taariikh tah-reek date khuruuj koo-rooj exit/departure

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dukhuul doo-kool entry siyaaHa see-yah-hah tourism saa’iH sah-eeh tourist (M) saa’iHa sah-ee-hah tourist (F) muhaajir moo-hah-jeer immigrant (M) muhaajira moo-hah-jee-rah immigrant (F) muhaajiruun moo-hah-jee-roon immigrants (M) muhaajiraat moo-hah-jee-rat immigrants (F)

Getting through the hijra post puts you one step closer to leaving the maTaar and discovering the wonders of the exotic country you’re visiting! After your interview with the hijra, you may proceed to pick up your ‘amti’a. You may use the help of a Hammaal (hah-mal; baggage handler/porter), or you may simply use an ‘ariiba (ah-ree-bah; cart) to haul your own luggage.

Before you actually leave the maTaar, you must go through diwaana (customs). Use the following phrases when speaking with diwaana officials:

✓ laa shay’ li al-‘i’laan. (lah shay lee al-eeh-lan; Nothing to declare.) ✓ ‘indii shay’ li al-‘i’laan. (een-dee shay lee al-eeh- lan; I have something to declare.)

Getting Around on Land Major metropolitan areas and most small towns have a number of transportation methods you can choose from. Table 9-3 lists some of the most common forms of transportation you’re likely to use.

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Table 9-3 Major Forms of Transportation Arabic Pronunciation Translation Taaksii tak-see taxi Haafila hah-fee-lah bus qiTaar kee-tar train nafaq ‘arDiiy nah-fak ar-dee subway safiina sah-fee-nah ship Sayyaara sah-yah-rah car Sayyaara ‘ijaariya sah-yah-rah ee-jah- rental car ree-yah darraaja dah-rah-jah bicycle darraaja naariyya dah-rah-jah nah-ree- motorcycle yah Hailing a taxi When hailing a cab in a foreign country, keep the following advice in mind:

✓ Make sure that the taxi you hail is fully licensed and authorized by the local agencies to operate as a taxi. A number of companies operate illegal taxis and take advantage of unsuspecting tourists — make sure you’re not one of them! Most legitimate taxi operators have licensing information on display somewhere inside the cab or even on the car’s exterior. ✓ Be aware that most taxis that run to and from the airport charge a flat rate. Inquire about the flat rate before you get into the taxi. ✓ If you’re in the city, make sure the taxi saa’iq (sah-eek; driver) turns on the Hasuub (hah- soob; meter). A common occurrence is that a driver forgets (either accidentally or intention- ally) to turn on the meter and ends up charging you an exorbitant amount of money for a short ride.

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In most Arab and Middle Eastern countries, tipping the saa’iq is not required. However, I’m sure the saa’iq won’t argue if you decide to give him a little tip!

Words to Know ‘iHtafiDH eeh-tah-feed keep (command form) baaqii bah-kee change (money) thaman tah-man taz- fare tadhkiira kee-rah Hasuub hah-soob counter/meter

Taking a bus The Haafila (hah-fee-lah; bus) is a convenient mode of transportation whether you’re traveling across town or across the country. If you’re in a city and traveling within city limits, taking the bus is a good option because it usually costs less than a taxi. If you’re traveling across the country, not only is taking a bus an economical option, but you also get to enjoy the beautiful scenery!

Most Haafilaat (hah-fee-lat; buses) accept prepaid biTaaqaat (bee-tah-kaht; tickets). If you take the Haafila frequently, refill your biTaaqa regularly. Otherwise, if you take a bus only occasionally, you’ll be glad to know that most Haafilaat also accept fuluus (foo-loos; cash) as long as it’s small bills. Here are some common terms you may need or encounter if you decide to take a Haafila:

✓ biTaaqat al-Haafila (bee-tah-kaht al-hah-fee-lah; bus ticket) ✓ maHaTTat al-Haafila (mah-hah-tat al-hah-fee-lah; bus station/bus stop)

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✓ saa’iq al-Haafila (sah-eek al-hah-fee-lah; bus driver) ✓ tawqiit al-Haafila (taw-keet al-hah-fee-lah; bus schedule)

If you want to say “every” as in “every day” or “every hour,” all you do is add the word kul (kool; every) before the noun that describes the time you’re referring to. For example:

✓ kul yawm (kool yawm; every day) ✓ kul saa’a (kool sah-ah; every hour) ✓ kul niSf saa’a (kool nee-sef sah-ah; every half hour) ✓ kul rubu’ saa’a (kool roo-booh sah-ah; every 15 minutes)

Here are some other phrases to help you find the bus you need:

✓ ‘afwan, hal haadhihi al-Haafila tadhhab ‘ilaa waSat al-madiina? (af-wan, hal hah-zee-hee al- hah-fee-lah taz-hab ee-lah wah-sat al-mah-dee- nah? Excuse me, does this bus go downtown?) ✓ ‘ayna al-Haafila ‘ilaa waSat al-madiina? (eh-yeh- nah al-hah-fee-lah ee-lah wah-sat al-mah-dee-nah? Which bus goes downtown?) ✓ mataa sataSil al-Haafila raqm ‘ashra? (mah-tah sah-tah-sil al-hah-fee-lah rah-kem ash-rah? When does bus number 10 arrive?)

Boarding a train The qiTaar (kee-tar; train) is a popular alternative if you’re looking for transportation that’s convenient, fast, affordable, and allows you to do a little sight- seeing while you’re on the go. When you board the qiTaar, be ready to provide your biTaaqa to the qiTaar attendant. Although boarding most qiTaar doesn’t require a biTaaqa shakhSiyya (bee-tah-kah shak-see-yah; personal ID card), you should be ready to present one if an attendant asks you for it.

13_225233-ch09.indd 150 1/30/09 11:42:34 PM Chapter 9: I Get Around: Transportation 151 Asking for Directions Being able to ask for — and understand — ‘ittijaahaat (ee-tee-jah-hat; directions) is an important skill. In this section, I tell you how to interact with native speakers in order to get relevant information to help you find what you’re looking for!

Asking “where” questions The best way to get directions-related information from Arabic speakers is to ask ‘ayna (eh-yeh-nah; where) questions. Luckily, the structure of an ‘ayna question is relatively straightforward: You use ‘ayna followed by the subject. For example:

✓ ‘ayna al-funduq? (eh-yeh-nah al-foon-dook; Where is the hotel?) ✓ ‘ayna al-haatif? (eh-yeh-nah al-haa-teef; Where is the phone?) ✓ ‘ayna al-mirHaaD? (eh-yeh-nah al-meer-haad; Where is the bathroom?)

Be sure to define the subject following ‘ayna. You define a subject by adding the definite article prefix al- to the subject noun. For example, funduq means “hotel,” and al-funduq means “the hotel.” So if you’re asking where the hotel is located, you say, ‘ayna al- funduq? (Where is the hotel?) and not ‘ayna funduq?, which translates to “Where is hotel?”

Answering “where” questions You can answer an ‘ayna question in a number of different ways, ranging from the simple to the convo- luted. In order to answer ‘ayna questions, you have to understand the structure of the ‘ayna question reply, which usually follows this format: subject, preposition, object.

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Take a look at some common ‘ayna questions and their corresponding replies:

✓ ‘ayna al-mustashfaa? (eh-yeh-nah al-moos-tash- faah; Where is the hospital?) al-mustashfaa fii al-madiina. (al-moos-tash-faah fee al-mah-dee-nah; The hospital is in the city.) ✓ ‘ayna al-maT’am? (eh-yeh-nah al-mah-tam; Where is the restaurant?) al-maT’am qariib min al-funduq. (al-mah-tam qah-reeb meen al-foon-dook; The restaurant is close to the hotel.) ✓ ‘ayna al-kitaab? (eh-yeh-nah al-kee-taab; Where is the book?) al-kitaab taHta aT-Taawila. (al-kee-taab tah-tah at-tah-wee-lah; The book is underneath the table.)

Notice that in these examples, you use a preposition to establish a connection between the subject (in this case, what or who you’re looking for) and the object (the location of the desired subject). In order to establish the desired relationship, it’s very important for you to be familiar with some common prepositions:

✓ ‘alaa (ah-laah; on) ✓ fii (fee; in) ✓ ‘ilaa (ee-laah; to) ✓ qariib min (qah-reeb meen; close to) ✓ ba’id min (bah-eed meen; far from) ✓ bijaanib (bee-jaah-neeb; next to) ✓ fawqa (faw-qah; on top of) ✓ taHta (tah-tah; underneath/below) ✓ ‘amaama (ah-maah-mah; in front of) ✓ waraa’a (wah-raah-ah; behind) ✓ yamiin min (yah-meen meen; right of) ✓ yasiir min (yah-seer meen; left of)

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The subject in the reply to an ‘ayna question must also be defined. In addition, the object in the ‘ayna reply statement should be defined as well, either by using the definite article prefix al- or by including a predefined object.

Asking with courtesy Of course, you can’t just go up to someone and ask them bluntly, ‘ayna al-funduq? (Where is the hotel?). That wouldn’t be very polite. The proper etiquette for approaching someone and asking for directions is to first say as-salaamu ‘alaykum (ah-sah-lah-moo ah- lay-koom; hello) or ‘ahlan wa sahlan (ah-hel-an wah sah-hel-an; hi) and then ask if he or she would permit you to ask a question. For example, you begin the exchange by saying:

‘afwan. hal yumkin ‘an ‘as’alaka su’aal? (ahf- wan. Hal yoom-keen an ass-ah-lah-kah soo-aah-l; Excuse me. May I ask you a question?)

After the person agrees to take your question, you may proceed to ask for directions.

Could you repeat that? Sometimes, when you ask for directions, the person who tries to help you starts talking too fast and you can’t quite understand what he or she is saying. Other times, you may be in a loud area, such as near a downtown traffic jam, and you can’t make out what the other person is saying. In either case, you have to ask the person who’s giving you directions to speak more slowly or to repeat what he or she has just said. These phrases can help you cope with these situations:

✓ ‘afwan (ahf-wan; excuse me/pardon me) ✓ ‘ismaH lii (ees-maah lee; excuse me) ✓ laa ‘afham (laa ah-fham; I don’t understand) ✓ takallam bi baT’in min faDlik (tah-kah-lahm bee bat-een meen fahd-leek; speak slowly please)

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✓ hal yumkin ‘an ta’id min faDlik? (hal yoom- keen an tah-eed meen fahd-leek; Could you repeat please?) ✓ ‘a’id min faDlik (ah-eed meen fahd-leek; Repeat please) ✓ maadhaa qult? (maah-zaah koo-let; What did you say?)

Here’s a conversation that puts these phrases to use:

John: ‘afwan. hal yumkin ‘an ‘as’alaka su’aal? (ahf-wan. hal yoom-keen an ass-ah-lah-kah soo- aah-l? Excuse me. May I ask you a question?) Maria: na’am. (nah-ahm. Yes.) John: ‘ayna al-madrasa? (eh-yeh-nah al-mah-drah- sah? Where is the school?) Maria: maa ‘ismu al-madrasa? (maah ees-muh al- mah-drah-sah? What’s the name of the school?) John: al-madrasa al-amriikiiyya. (al-mah-drah- sah al-am-ree-kee-yah. The American school.) Maria: al-madrasa ba’iida min hunaa. (al-mah- drah-sah bah-ee-dah meen hoo-naah. The school is far from here.) John: laa ‘afham. hal yumkin ‘an ta’id min faDlik? (laa ah-fham. hal yoom-keen an tah-eed meen fahd-leek? I don’t understand. Could you repeat please?) Maria: al-madrasa laysat qariiba min hunaa. yajib ‘an ta’khudh al-haafila ‘ilaa waSat al- madiina. (al-mah-drah-sah lay-saht qah-ree-bah meen hoo-naah. yah-jeeb an tah-khoo-dh al-haa- fee-lah ee-laah wah-saht al-mah-dee-nah. The school is not close to here. You must take the bus to the center of the city.) John: fahamt! Shukran jaziilan. (fah-ha-met! shook-ran jah-zee-lan. I understand! Thank you very much.) Maria: ‘afwan. (ahf-wan. You’re welcome.)

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Words to Know ba’iid bah-eed far (M) ba’iida bah-eed-ah far (F) qariib qah-reeb close (M) qariiba qah-reeb-ah close (F) hunaa hoo-naah here hunaaka hoo-naah-kah there ‘afham ahf-ham understand haafila haa-fee-lah bus taksii tak-see taxi qitaar kee-tar train maHaTTa mah-hah-tah station

Using command forms When you ask someone for directions, the person directs you to a specific location. Essentially, he or she tells you where to go, which qualifies as a command form. The command form applies to all personal pronouns, but you have to use different commands for men and women. Here are some common command forms:

Masculine Command Feminine Command ‘a’id (ah-eed; repeat) ‘a’idii (ah-eed-ee; repeat) ‘idhhab (eez-hab; go) ‘idhhabii (eez-hab-ee; go) khudh (khooz; take) khudhii (khooz-ee; take) (continued)

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(continued) Masculine Command Feminine Command Tuf (toof; turn) Tufii (toof-ee; turn) qif (keef; stop) qifii (keef-ee; stop)

Note: ‘imshii (eem-shee; walk) is a special command form that is gender-neutral. The following conversation shows how the command form is used to tell someone how to get to their destination:

Susan: ‘afwan. hal yumkin ‘an ‘as’alaka su’aal? (ahf-wan. hal yoom-keen an ass-ah-lah-kah soo- aah-l? Excuse me. May I ask you a question?) Rita: Taba’an. (tah-bah-an. Of course.) Susan: ‘ayna funduq al-jawhara? (eh-yeh-nah foon-dook al-jaw-ha-rah? Where is the Jawhara Hotel?) Rita: ‘aDHunnu ‘anna haadhaa al-funduq fii waSat al-madiina. (ah-zuh-nuh an-nah hah-zah al- foon-dook fee wah-sat al-mah-dee-nah. I believe that this hotel is in the center of the city.) Susan: na’am. kayfa ‘adhhabu hunaaka? (nah- ahm. kay-fah az-hah-boo hoo-nah-kah? Yes. How do I get there?) Rita: Taba’an. ‘idhhabii ‘ilaa shaari’ Hassan thumma Tufii ‘ilaa al-yamiin. (tah-bah-an. eez- hab-ee ee-laah shah-reeh hah-san thoo-mah toof-ee ee-laah al-yah-meen. Certainly. Go to Avenue Hassan, then turn right.) Susan: kwayyis. (kwah-yees. Okay.) Rita: thumma ‘imshii ‘ilaa al-maktaba wa qifii. al-funduq ‘amaama al-maktaba. Al-funduq fii ash-shamaal. (thoo-maah eem-shee ee-laah al-mak- tah-bah wah keef-ee. al-foon-dook ah-maah-mah al- mak-tah-bah. al-foon-dook fee as-shah-maal. Then walk toward the library and stop. The hotel is in front of the library. The hotel is facing north.)

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Susan: shukran li musaa’adatuki. (shook-ran lee moo-saa-ah-dah-too-kee. Thank you for your help.)

Words to Know ‘aDHunnu ah-zuh-nnuh I believe Thumma thoo-mah then

kwayyis kwah-yees okay musaa’ada moo-saa-ah-dah help shamaal shah-maal north janoub jah-noob south sharq shah-rek east gharb ghah-reb west

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13_225233-ch09.indd 158 1/30/09 11:42:34 PM Chapter 10 Laying Down Your Weary Head: Hotel or Home

In This Chapter ▶ Hunting for the right accommodation ▶ Reserving your room ▶ Checking in and out ▶ Making a home

icking the right funduq (foon-dook; hotel) for Pyou and your family or friends can sometimes make or break your safar (sah-far; trip). During a safar or riHla (reeh-lah; vacation), the funduq is your home away from home.

In this chapter, I show you the ins and outs of choosing the right funduq to meet your travel, budgetary, and personal needs. You find out how to inquire about specific aspects of the funduq (such as available amenities and proximity to the city center), how to make a room reservation and check into your room, how to interact with the funduq staff, and, last but not least, how to successfully check out of your hotel room!

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If you’re staying in someone’s home (or establishing your own), I also offer some key terms to help you navigate around the house.

Choosing the Right Accommodation When choosing the right funduq, you need to consider a number of factors:

✓ thaman (tah-man; price) ✓ ghurfa (ghoor-fah; room) ✓ Hajem al-ghurfa (hah-jem al-ghoor-fah; room size) ✓ naw’ al-ghurfa (nah-ouh al-ghoor-fah; room type) ✓ khidmat al-ghurfa (keed-mat al-ghoor-fah; room service) ✓ ‘iiwaa’ (ee-wah; accommodations) ✓ maraafiq (mah-rah-feek; amenities) ✓ masbaH (mas-bah; swimming pool) ✓ maT’am (mat-ham; restaurant)

When inquiring about a ghurfa, you may need to use the following terms:

✓ ghurfa li-shakhS waaHid (ghoor-fah lee-sha-kes wah-heed; single room) ✓ ghurfa li-shakhsayn (ghoor-fah lee-shak-sayn; double room) ✓ sariir (sah-reer; bed) ✓ mirHaad (meer-had; toilet) ✓ balcoon (bal-koon; balcony) ✓ tilifizyoon (tee-lee-feez-yoon; television) ✓ Tabaq (tah-bak; floor/level)

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To create a possessive noun in English, you usually use an apostrophe, such as “the girl’s cat” or “the woman’s house.” It’s the same in Arabic, except that you reverse the word order — you use an indefinite noun followed by a definite noun, as in Hajem al-ghurfa. al- ghurfa (a definite noun because it contains the definite article prefix al-) means “the room,” and Hajem (an indefinite noun) means “size.” So when you read or hear Hajem al-ghurfa, you automatically know that the ghurfa is the possessor acting on the Hajem (size) to express the “room’s size” or, literally, “the size of the room.”

Here are some other phrases that may come in handy:

✓ ‘uriidu ‘an ‘a’raf ‘idhaa kaana ‘indakum ghuraf faarigha. (oo-ree-doo ann ah-raf ee-zah kah-nah een-dah-koom ghoo-raf fah-ree-ghah. I would like to know whether you have any rooms available.) ✓ hal ‘indakum ghuraf li-shakhsayn? (hal een- dah-koom ghoo-raf lee-shak-sayn? Do you have any double rooms?) ✓ hal fii al-Hammaam duush wa banyoo? (hal fee al-hah-mam doosh wah ban-yoo? Is there a shower and a bathtub in the bathroom?) ✓ hal fii al-ghurfa khizaana? (hal fee al-ghoor-fah kee-zah-nah? Is there a safe in the room?) ✓ hal al-ghurfa ‘indahaa mikwaa al-malaabis? (hal al-ghoor-fah een-dah-hah meek-wah al-mah- lah-bees? Does the room come equipped with a clothes iron?) ✓ kam min sariir fii haadhihi al-ghurfa? (kam meen sah-reer fee hah-zee-hee al-ghoor-fah? How many beds are in this room?) ✓ hal ‘indahaa balcoon? (hal een-dah-hah bal- koon? Does it have a balcony?) ✓ sa-a’khudh haadhihi al-ghurfa. (sah-ah-kooz hah-zee-hee al-ghoor-fah. I’ll take this room.)

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Words to Know ghuraf ghoo-raf rooms faarigha fah-ree-ghah available naafida nah-fee-dah window Hammaam hah-mam bathroom duush doosh shower banyoo ban-yoo bathtub maghsala mag-sah-lah sink fuuTa foo-tah towel mir’aat meer-at mirror wisaada wee-sah-dah pillow baTTaniyya bah-tah-nee-yah blanket miSbaaH mees-bah lamp haatif hah-teef phone midyaa’ meed-yah radio khizaana kee-zah-nah safe deposit box mushrifat moosh-ree-fat room staff al-ghurfa al-ghoor-fah attendant

Making a Reservation After you identify the right funduq with the right maraafiq and ghurfa, you’re ready to make a Hajzu (haj-zoo; reservation). Before you do, though, you

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have a few considerations to make, such as the duration and length of your stay, the number and type of ghuraf you’re reserving, the number of people staying, and the cost to stay at the funduq. This section explores all these elements so that you can be prepared to make a smooth Hajzu and secure the best accommodation for your safar!

Figuring out the price thaman (tah-man; price) is an important factor to think about before you make your Hajzu. Fortunately, there are many accommodation options to suit every mizaaniya (mee-zah-nee-yah; budget). If you can afford it, making a Hajzu in a funduq faakhir (foon-dook fah- kheer; luxury hotel) is nice. If you’re a Taalib (tah-leeb; student), staying at a daar aT-Talaba (dar ah-tah-lah- bah; youth hostel) is a more affordable option.

When making your Hajzu, be sure to inquire about any special tanziilaat (tan-zee-lat; discounts) that the funduq might be offering. Here are some tanziilaat you can ask about:

✓ tanziilaat al-majmoo’aat (tan-zee-lat al-maj-moo- at; group discounts) ✓ tanziilaat as-saa’aat baTaala (tan-zee-lat ah-sah- at bah-tah-lah; off-peak discounts) ✓ tanziilaat al-fuSul (tan-zee-lat al-foo-sool; seasonal discounts) ✓ rayTaat as-safar (ray-tat ah-sah-far; special travel packages)

And here are some of the questions you’ll need to ask to take advantage of these discounts:

✓ kam thaman ghurfa li-shakhS waaHid li muddat layla waaHida? (kam tah-man ghoor-fah lee-sha-kes wah-heed lee moo-dat lay-lah wah-hee- dah? How much is a single room for one night?) ✓ hal ‘indakum ‘ay tanziilaat li al-fuSul? (hal een- dah-koom ay tan-zee-lat lee al-foo-sool? Do you have any seasonal discounts?)

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To say you’re going to stay at the funduq “for a period of” so much time, use the following formula: li muddat (lee moo-dat) followed by the duration of your stay. For example, to say you’re staying “for a period of a week,” say li muddat ‘usbuu’ (lee moo-dat oos-booh). Here are some other examples:

✓ li muddat yawm (lee moo-dat yah-oum; for a period of one day) ✓ li muddat khamsat ‘ayyam (lee moo-dat kam-sat ah-yam; for a period of five days) ✓ li muddat ‘usbuu’ wa niSf (lee moo-dat oos-booh wah nee-sef; for a period of one and a half weeks)

To say that you’re staying from one date until another date, use the prepositions min (meen; from) and ‘ilaa (ee-lah; until). For example, if you’re staying “from Monday until Thursday,” you say min al-‘ithnayn ‘ilaa al-khamiis (meen al-eeth-nayn ee-lah al-kah- mees). Here are some other examples:

✓ min al-‘arbi’aa’ ‘ilaa al-’aHad (meen al-ar-bee-ah ee-lah al-ah-had; from Thursday until Sunday) ✓ min ‘ishriin yulyuu ‘ilaa thalaathiin yulyuu (meen eesh-reen yoo-leh-yoo ee-lah thah-lah-theen yoo-leh-yoo; from July 20 until July 30) ✓ min ‘aghusTus ‘ilaa sibtambar (meen ah-ghoo- seh-toos ee-lah seeb-tam-bar; from August until September) ✓ ‘uriidu haadhihi al-ghurfa li-muddat ‘usbuu’. (oo-ree-doo hah-zee-hee al-ghoor-fah lee-moo-dat

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oos-booh. I’d like this room for a period of one week.) ✓ ‘uriidu haadhihi al-ghurfa min Disambar al- ’awwal ‘ilaa Disambar as-saabi’. (oo-ree-doo hah-zee-hee al-ghoor-fah meen dee-sahm-bar al- ah-wal ee-lah dee-sahm-bar ah-sah-bee. I’d like this room from December 1 until December 7.)

And if you do want to take a vacation during the holidays, you can ask

hal haadhihi al-ghurfa mawjuuda li ‘uTlat nihaayat as-sana? (hal hah-zee-hee al-ghoor-fah maw-joo-dah lee oot-lat nee-hah-yat ah-sah-nah? Is this room available during the end of year holiday?)

The verb for “to stay” is baqaa in the past tense and yabqaa in the present. To put a fi’l (fee-ehl; verb) in the mustaqbal (moos-tak- bal; future), all you do is add the prefix sa- to the fi’l in the present tense. For example, to communicate “I will stay for a period of one week,” you say sa-’abqaa li muddat ‘usbuu’ (sah-ab-qah lee moo-dat oos-booh).

Checking In to the Hotel When you arrive at your funduq after a long safar, probably the last thing on your mind is going through the formalities of checking in. If you already have a Hajzu, ask the muwaDHaf al-‘istiqbaal (moo-wah-daf al-ees-teek-bal; desk clerk) for more ma’luumaat (mah- loo-mat; information). You might try this phrase:

‘ahlan. ‘indii Hajzu li ghurfa li-shakhs waaHid li muddat ‘usbuu’ bidaa’an al-yawm. (ah-lan. een-dee haj-zoo lee ghoor-fah lee-shah-kes wah- heed lee moo-dat oos-booh bee-dah-an al-yah-oum. Hi. I have a reservation for a single room for one week beginning today.)

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If you don’t have a Hajzu, you can inquire about room mawjooda (maw-joo-dah; availability) at the front desk. Here are some important terms you may need during check-in:

✓ miftaH (meef-tah; key) ✓ miftaH al-ghurfa (meef-tah al-ghoor-fah; room key) ✓ ‘amti’a (am-tee-ah; luggage) ✓ shanTa (shan-tah; suitcase) ✓ miHfaDHa (meeh-fah-dah; briefcase) ✓ Tabiq (tah-beek; floor) ✓ miS’ad (mees-ad; elevator) ✓ ‘istiqbaal (ees-teek-bal; reception) ✓ maktab al-‘istiqbaal (mak-tab al-ees-teek-bal; reception desk) ✓ muwaDHaf al-‘istiqbaal (moo-wah-daf al-ees- teek-bal; desk clerk) (M) ✓ muwaDHafa al-‘istiqbaal (moo-wah-dah-fah al- ees-teek-bal; desk clerk) (F) ✓ bawwaab (bah-wab; concierge) (M) ✓ bawwaaba (bah-wah-bah; concierge) (F) ✓ maDmuun (mad-moon; included)

When interacting with the funduq staff, the following key phrases are likely to come in handy:

✓ hal al-fuTuur maDmuun ma’a al-ghurfa? (hal al- foo-toor mad-moon mah-ah al-ghoor-fah; Is breakfast included with the room?) ✓ mataa yabda’u al-fuTuur? (mah-tah yab-dah-oo al-foo-toor; When does breakfast begin?) ✓ mataa yantahii al-fuTuur? (mah-tah yan-tah-hee al-foo-toor; When does breakfast end?) ✓ hal hunaaka khabaran lii? (hal hoo-nah-kah kah- bah-ran lee; Are there any messages for me?)

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✓ ‘uriidu nahaad bi shakel mukaalama ma’a as- saa’a as-saabi’a. (oo-ree-doo nah-had bee shah-kel moo-kah-lah-mah mah-ah ah-sah-ah ah-sah-bee-ah; I would like a wake-up call at 7:00.) ✓ hal ‘indakum mushrifat al-ghurfa? (hal een-dah- koom moosh-ree-fat al-ghoor-fah; Do you have room service?)

Here are some phrases you might hear from the hotel staff:

✓ ghurfatuka fii aT-Tabiq as-saadis. (ghoor-fah- too-kah fee ah-tah-beek ah-sah-dees. Your room is located on the sixth floor.) ✓ haa huwa al-miftaH. (hah hoo-wah al-meef-tah. Here is your room key.) ✓ hal ‘indaka ‘amti’a? (hal een-dah-kah am-tee-ah? Do you have any luggage?) ✓ al-Hammaal sa-yusaa’iduka ‘ilaa al-ghurfa. (al- hah-mal sah-yoo-sah-ee-doo-kah ee-lah al-ghoor- fah. The baggage handler will help you to your room.)

Checking Out of the Hotel After your stay at the funduq, it’s time for waqt al- khuruuj (wah-ket al-koo-rooj; checkout). The following phrases will help you check out on time:

✓ mataa waqt al-khuruuj? (mah-tah wah-ket al- koo-rooj? When is the checkout time?) ✓ maa hiya al-faatuura al-’aama? (mah hee-yah al- fah-too-rah al-ah-mah? What’s the total bill?) ✓ ‘uriidu ‘iiSaala min faDlik. (oo-ree-doo ee-sah- lah meen fad-leek. I’d like a receipt please.)

Before you leave the funduq, make sure you get all your stuff from your ghurfa, and take care of the bill. Some common extra charges to watch out for on your faatuura (fah-too-rah; bill) include:

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✓ faatuura al-haatif (fah-too-rah al-hah-teef; telephone bill) ✓ faatuura at-tilfaaz (fah-too-rah ah-teel-faz; TV pay-per-view bill) ✓ faatuura aT-Ta’aam (fah-too-rah ah-tah-am; food bill)

When you pay the faatuura, it’s a good idea to get an ‘iiSaala (eeh-sah-lah; receipt) in case you have a prob- lem with the bill later on or can be reimbursed for your travel costs.

Life at Home If you’re like most people, you spend a lot of time at your manzil (man-zeel; house). The manzil is a bit different than the bayt (bah-yet; home) because a manzil can be any old manzil, whereas the bayt is the space where you feel most comfortable. In many cultures, a manzil is a family’s or individual’s most prized pos- session or asset.

As you know, a manzil consists of ghuraf (ghoo-raf; rooms). This list should help you become familiar with the major types of ghuraf in a manzil:

✓ ghurfat al-juluus (ghoor-fat al-joo-loos; sitting room) ✓ ghurfat al-ma’iisha (ghoor-fat al-mah-ee-shah; living room) ✓ ghurfat al-‘akl (ghoor-fat al-ah-kel; dining room) ✓ ghurfat an-nawm (ghoor-fat ah-nah-wem; bedroom) ✓ Hammaam (hah-mam; bathroom) ✓ ghurfat al-ghasl (ghoor-fat al-ghah-sel; washing/ laundry room) ✓ maTbakh (mat-bak; kitchen)

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In addition to ghuraf, a manzil may also have a karaaj (kah-raj; garage) where you can park your sayyaara (sah-yah-rah; car), as well as a bustaan (boos-tan; garden) where you can play or just relax. Some manaazil (mah-nah-zeel; houses) even have a masbaH (mas-bah; swimming pool).

Each ghurfa in the manzil contains different items. For example, you can expect to find a sariir (sah-reer; bed) in a ghurfat an-nawm. Here are some items you can expect to find in the Hammaam:

✓ mirHaaD (meer-had; toilet) ✓ duush (doosh; shower) ✓ maghsala (mag-sah-lah; sink) ✓ shawkat al-‘asnaan (shaw-kat al-ass-nan; toothbrush) ✓ ghasuul as-sha’r (ghah-sool ah-shah-er; shampoo) ✓ Saabuun (sah-boon; soap) ✓ mir’aat (meer-at; mirror)

You can expect to find the following items in the maTbakh:

✓ furn (foo-ren; stove) ✓ tannuur (tah-noor; oven) ✓ thallaaja (thah-lah-jah; refrigerator) ✓ zubaala (zoo-bah-lah; trash can) ✓ shawkaat (shaw-kat; forks) ✓ malaa’iq (mah-lah-eek; spoons) ✓ sakaakiin (sah-kah-keen; knives) ✓ ku’uus (koo-oos; glasses) ✓ ‘aTbaaq (at-bak; dishes)

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14_225233-ch10.indd 170 1/30/09 11:42:52 PM Chapter 11 Dealing with Emergencies

In This Chapter ▶ Finding help when you need it ▶ Talking with a doctor ▶ Getting legal help

andling an emergency in your native tongue can Hbe difficult enough to deal with, and dealing with a situation in a foreign language such as Arabic may seem daunting. But don’t panic! In this chapter, I give you the right words, phrases, and procedures to help you overcome an emergency situation — whether medical, legal, or political.

Shouting Out for Help When you’re witnessing or experiencing an emergency such as a theft, a fire, or even someone having a heart attack, your first instinct is to yell musaa’ada (moo-sah-ah-dah; help)! This section tells you which words to use to express your sense of emergency ver- bally in order to get the right kind of musaa’ada.

Arabic has two words that mean “help”: musaa’ada (moo-sah-ah-dah) and mu’aawana (moo-ah-wah-nah). Both words are used interchangeably to ask for help in an emergency. You attract even more attention when you shout the words consecutively:

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✓ musaa’ada musaa’ada! (moo-sah-ah-dah moo- sah-ah-dah; Help help!) ✓ mu’aawana mu’aawana! (moo-ah-wah-nah moo- ah-wah-nah; Help help!)

Arabic actually has a third word that means “help”: najda (nah-jeh-dah). You can use najda to call for help, but be aware that screaming najda means that someone is in a severe, extremely dangerous, life-and-death situation. (If there were degrees to words for “help” — where level 3 is high and level 5 is extreme — musaa’ada and mu’aawana would be level 3s and najda would be a level 5.)

If you’re witnessing or experiencing a drowning, a heart attack, or a suicide attempt, you should scream najda like this:

an-najda an-najda! (ahn-nah-jeh-dah ahn-nah-jeh- dah; Help help!)

Here are some other important words and phrases to help you cope with an emergency:

✓ saa’iduunii! (sah-ee-doo-nee; Help me!) ✓ ‘aawinuunii! (ah-wee-noo-nee; Help me!) ✓ shurTa! (shoo-reh-tah; Police!) ✓ ‘uriidu Tabiib! (oo-ree-doo tah-beeb; I need a doctor!) ✓ liSS! (lehs; Thief!) ✓ naar! (nahr; Fire!)

A little help with the verb “to help” The word musaa’ada is derived from the verb saa’ada (sah-ah-dah), which means “to help.” Although screaming musaa’ada is an important first step to attract attention to an emergency, you also need to be able to coherently formulate a sentence in order to

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get the right kind of help. Use the form saa’ada to conjugate the verb “to help” in the past tense and yusaa’idu (yoo-sah-ee-doo) to conjugate it in the present tense. Table 11-1 shows the past tense. (Check out Chapter 2 for a quick reminder of the tenses.)

Table 11-1 The Past Tense of the Verb saa’ada (To Help) Form Pronunciation Meaning ‘anaa saa’adtu ah-nah sah-ahd- I helped too ‘anta saa’adta ahn-tah sah-ahd- You helped (MS) tah ‘anti saa’adti ahn-tee sah-ahd- You helped (FS) tee huwa saa’ada hoo-wah sah-ah- He helped dah hiya saa’adat hee-yah sah-ah- She helped daht naHnu saa’adnaa nah-noo sah-ahd- We helped naa ‘antum saa’adtum ahn-toom sah- You helped (MP) ahd-toom ‘antunna ahn-too-nah sah- You helped (FP) saa’adtunna ahd-too-nah hum saa’aduu hoom sah-ah-doo They helped (MP) hunna saa’adna hoo-nah sah-ahd- They helped (FP) nah antumaa ahn-too-mah sah- You helped (dual/ saa’adtumaa ahd-too-mah MP/FP) humaa saa’adaa hoo-mah sah-ah- They helped dah (dual/MP) humaa saa’adataa hoo-mah sah-ah- They helped dah-tah (dual/FP)

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Use the form yusaa’idu to conjugate “to help” in the present tense (see Table 11-2). Recall that the present tense in Arabic describes both a habitual action, such as “I help,” and an ongoing action, such as “I am helping.”

Table 11-2 The Present Tense of the Verb yusaa’idu (To Help) Form Pronunciation Meaning ‘anaa ah-nah oo-sah- I am helping ‘usaa’idu ee-doo ‘anta tusaa’idu ahn-tah too-sah- You are helping (MS) ee-doo ‘anti ahn-tee too-sah- You are helping (FS) tusaa’idiina ee-dee-nah huwa hoo-wah yoo-sah- He is helping yusaa’idu ee-doo hiya tusaa’idu hee-yah too-sah- She is helping ee-doo naHnu nah-noo noo-sah- We are helping nusaa’idu ee-doo ‘antum ahn-toom too-sah- You are helping (MP) tusaa’iduuna ee-doo-nah ‘antunna ahn-too-nah too- You are helping (FP) tusaa’idna sah-eed-nah hum hoom yoo-sah-ee- They are helping (MP) yusaa’iduuna doo-nah hunna hoo-nah yoo-sah- They are helping (FP) yusaa’idna eed-nah antumaa ahn-too-mah You are helping tusaa’idaani too-sah-ee-dah- (dual/MP/FP) nee humaa hoo-mah yoo-sah- They are helping yusaa’idaani ee-dah-nee (dual/MP) humaa hoo-mah too-sah- They are helping tusaa’idaani ee-dah-nee (dual/FP)

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Although Arabic has more than one word for “help,” musaa’ada is the most conjugated verb form. mu’aawana may also be conjugated using the form ‘aawana in the past tense and yu’aawinu in the present tense, but it’s more of an archaic and arcane verb that isn’t widely used in everyday Arabic. Because najda is more of a code word for distress, it doesn’t have a verb equivalent form.

Lending a hand Being in an emergency doesn’t always mean that you’re the one who needs help. You may be faced with a situation where you’re actually the person who’s in a position to offer help. The first thing you do in such a situation is ask questions to assess the damage and determine what course of action to take:

✓ maadhaa waqa’a? (mah-zah wah-qah-ah; What happened?) ✓ hal kul shay’ bikhayr? (hal kool shah-yeh bee- kayr; Is everything all right?) ✓ hal turiidu musaa’ada? (hal too-ree-doo moo- sah-ah-dah; Do you want help?) ✓ hal yajibu ‘an tadhhab ‘ilaa al-mustashfaa? (hal yah-jee-boo ann taz-hab ee-laa al-moos-tash-fah; Do you need to go to the hospital?) ✓ hal turiidu Tabiib? (hal too-ree-doo tah-beeb; Do you want a doctor?)

If you’re in a situation in which injuries are serious and the person appears to be disoriented, then you must take further steps, such as contacting the shurTa (shoo-reh-tah; police) or other first responders.

If you’re ever in a situation where you need to call the police, you may say the following on the phone: ‘aHtaaju bi musaa’ada fawran (ah-tah-joo bee moo- sah-ah-dah faw-ran; I need help right away).

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Here’s an example of how you can ask someone whether they need help:

Lamia: ‘afwan. hal kul shay’ bikhayr? (ah-feh- wan. hal kool shah-yeh bee-kayr? Excuse me. Is everything all right?) Woman: na’am. kul shay’ bikhayr. (nah-am. kool shah-yeh bee-kayr. Yes. Everything is all right.) Lamia: maadhaa waqa’a? (mah-zah wah-qah-ah? What happened?) Woman: laa shay’. laqad saqaTtu. (lah shah-yeh. lah-kad sah-qah-too. Nothing. I fell.) Lamia: hal turiidiina musaa’ada? (hal too-ree- dee-nah moo-sah-ah-dah? Do you need help?) Woman: laa shukran. kul shay’ sayakun bikhayr. (lah shook-ran. kool shah-yeh sah-yah- koon bee-kayr. No thank you. I will be all right.)

Getting Medical Help Visiting the doctor is sometimes essential, and this section introduces you to important medical terms to help you interact effectively with medical staff.

Locating the appropriate doctor In case of a medical urgency, your first stop should be the mustashfaa (moos-tash-fah; hospital) to see a Tabiib (tah-beeb; doctor). If you simply need a checkup, go see a Tabiib ‘aam (tah-beeb ahm; general doctor). If your needs are more specific, look for one of these specialist doctors:

✓ Tabiib ‘asnaan (tah-beeb ahs-nan; dentist) ✓ Tabiib ‘aynayn (tah-beeb ah-yeh-nayn; ophthalmologist) ✓ Tabiib rijl (tah-beeb ree-jel; orthopedist) ✓ Tabiib ‘aTfaal (tah-beeb aht-fal; pediatrician)

15_225233-ch11.indd 176 1/30/09 11:43:10 PM Chapter 11: Dealing with Emergencies 177 Talking about your body Locating the right doctor is only the first step toward getting treatment. In order to interact with the Tabiib, you need to be able to identify your different body parts in Arabic, explaining which parts hurt and which are fine. Table 11-3 lists all your major body parts.

Table 11-3 Body Parts Arabic Pronunciation Translation jasad jah-sad body ra’s rahs head fam fahm mouth lisaan lee-sahn tongue ‘asnaan ass-nahn teeth wajh wah-jeh face jild jee-led skin ‘anf ah-nef nose ‘udhunayn oo-zoo-nayn ears ‘aynayn ah-yeh-nayn eyes dimaagh dee-mag brain qalb qah-leb heart ri’a ree-ah lung katef kah-tef shoulder Sadr sah-der chest ma’iida mah-ee-dah stomach diraa’ dee-rah arm yad yahd hand ‘aSaabi’ ah-sah-beh fingers rijl ree-jel leg qadam qah-dam foot (continued)

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Table 11-3 (continued) Arabic Pronunciation Translation ‘aSaabi’ al-qadam ah-sah-beh al-qah-dam toes rukba roo-keh-bah knee ‘aDHm ah-zem bone damm deh-m blood Dhahr zah-her back

Explaining your symptoms The Tabiib can’t provide you with the proper treatment unless you communicate the kind of pain you’re experiencing. How mariiD (mah-reed; sick) do you feel? Do you have a SuDaa’ (soo-dah; headache)? Or perhaps a Haraara (hah-rah-rah; fever)? Table 11-4 lists common symptoms.

Table 11-4 Common Symptoms Arabic Pronunciation Translation maraD mah-rad sickness waja’ wah-jah ache/ailment su’aal soo-ahl cough bard bah-red cold Harq hah-rek burn raDDa rah-dah bruise waja’ ‘aDHahr wah-jah ah-zah- backache her maraD al-Hasaasiya mah-rad al-hah- allergy sah-see-yah

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When you go to the Tabiib, he or she may ask you, maadha yu’limuka? (mah-zah yoo-lee-moo-kah; What hurts you?). The most common way to respond to this question is to name the body part that hurts followed by yu’limunii (yoo-lee-moo-nee; hurts me).

So when the Tabiib asks maadha yu’limuka?, you may say:

✓ ra’sii yu’limunii. (rah-see yoo-lee-moo-nee; My head hurts me.) ✓ Sadrii yu’limunii. (sah-der-ee yoo-lee-moo-nee. My chest hurts me.) ✓ diraa’ii yu’limunii. (dee-rah-ee yoo-lee-moo-nee. My arm hurts me.)

Getting treatment After the Tabiib analyzes your symptoms, he or she is able to offer you ‘ilaaj (ee-laj; treatment). Following the Tabiib’s orders is important for both getting and remaining saliim (sah-leem; healthy), so pay attention. Here are treatment-related words you may encounter:

✓ dawaa’ (dah-wah; medicine) ✓ SayDaliiyya (sah-yeh-dah-lee-yah; pharmacy) ✓ ‘iyaada (ee-yah-dah; clinic)

The following is a sample conversation between a doctor and a patient:

Doctor: maadha yu’limuka? (mah-zah yoo-lee- moo-kah? What hurts you?) Omar: ra’sii yu’limunii. (rah-see yoo-lee-moo-nee. My head hurts.) Doctor: shay’ ‘aakhar? (shah-y ah-kar? Anything else?)

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Omar: na’am. ‘indii Haraara. (nah-am. een-dee hah-rah-rah. Yes. I have a fever.) Doctor: khudh haadhaa ‘asbiriin wa satakuun bikhayr. (kooz hah-zah ass-pee-reen wah sah-tah- koon bee-kah-yer. Take this aspirin, and you will be all right.)

Words to Know mariiD mah-reed sick ‘ilaaj ee-laj treatment saliim sah-leem healthy sharaab su’aal shah-rahb soo-all cough medicine Suurat ‘ashi’a soo-rat ah-shee-ah X-ray ‘asbiriin ass-pee-reen aspirin

Acquiring Legal Help Let’s hope it’s never the case, but you may have a run-in with the law and need the services of a muHaamiiy (moo-hah-mee; lawyer). The muHaamiiy has a good understanding of the qaanuun (qah-noon; law) and is in a position to help you if you’re ever charged with committing a mujrima (mooj-ree-mah; crime).

If you happen to be in a foreign country and need legal representation, the best route is to contact your country’s qunSuliyya (koon- soo-lee-yah; consulate) and ask to speak to

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the qunSul (koon-sool; consul). Because consular officers have a very good understanding of the laws of their host countries, you may be better off getting help directly from them rather than finding your own muHaamiiy. Especially if it looks like you have to go to maHkama (mah-kah-mah; court) and face a qaadiiy (qah-dee; judge), the help a qunSuliyya can provide is invaluable.

You may also want to call your country’s sifaara (see-fah-rah; embassy) if you’re in a really serious situation. Even if you’re unable to talk to the safiir (sah- feer; ambassador) directly, your sifaara may take the appropriate steps to provide you with assistance.

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15_225233-ch11.indd 182 1/30/09 11:43:10 PM Chapter 12 Ten Favorite Arabic Expressions

rabic uses a lot of colorful expressions and Awords. Here are ten of the best. marHaba bikum! mahr-hah-bah bee-koom; Welcome to all of you!

This term of welcoming is extremely popular with Arabic speakers. It’s usually said with a lot of zest and enthusiasm and is often accompanied by very animated hand gestures. It’s not uncommon for someone to say marHaba bikum and then proceed to hug you or give you a kiss on the cheek. This expression is a very affectionate form of greeting someone, such as an old friend, a very special guest, or a close rela- tive. But the relationship doesn’t necessarily have to be a close one — if you’re ever invited into a Middle Eastern home for a dinner or a lunch, don’t be surprised if the host jovially shouts marHaba bikum and gives you a great big bear hug!

mumtaaz! moom-tahz; Excellent!

This expression is a way to note that something is going very well. A teacher may tell her students mumtaaz if they conjugate a difficult Arabic verb in

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the past tense, or a fan may yell mumtaaz if his team scores a goal against an opponent. mumtaaz is used during joyous events or as a sign of encouragement. It’s a very positive word that Arabic speakers like to use because it connotes a positive attitude.

al-Hamdu li-llah al-hahm-doo lee-lah; Praise to God

al-Hamdu li-llah is a part of everyday Arabic. Arabic speakers say al-Hamdu li-llah after performing almost any task, including finishing a meal, drinking water, finishing a project at work, and running an errand. The expression’s extensive application goes beyond completing tasks; for example, if someone asks you kayf al-Haal? (kah-yef al-hal; How are you doing?), you may reply al-Hamdu li-llah and mean “Praise to God; I’m doing well.” Because of its versatility, it’s customary to hear al-Hamdu li-llah quite often when native speakers are talking to each other.

inshaa’ allah een-shah-ah ah-lah; If God wishes it

If you’ve ever watched Arabic speakers on Arabic TV, you’ve probably heard them use the expression inshaa’ allah. This expression, which literally means “If God wishes it” or “If God wills it,” is very popular among Arabic speakers when discussing future events. It’s almost a rule that whenever someone brings up an event that will take place in the future, the expression inshaa’ allah follows soon after. For example, when someone asks you how you think you’re going to do on your next exam, you say, ‘ata- mannaa ‘an ‘anjaH inshaa’ allah (ah-tah-mah-nah ann an-jaheen-shah-ah ah-lah; I hope I do well, if God wishes it).

16_225233-ch12.indd 184 1/30/09 11:43:23 PM Chapter 12: Ten Favorite Arabic Expressions 185 mabruk! mahb-rook; Blessing upon you!

The root of the word mabruk is the noun baraka (bah-rah-kah), which means “blessing.” mabruk is used at joyous occasions, such as the birth of a baby or a wedding ceremony. Though its strict interpreta- tion is “Blessing upon you,” mabruk is just like saying “Congratulations.” When you say mabruk, make sure you say it with a lot of energy and enthusiasm!

bi ‘idni allah bee eed-nee ah-lah; With God’s guidance

This expression is meant to motivate and offer support and guidance, and although this expression contains a reference to God, it’s actually a lot less common than expressions such as inshaa’ allah or al-Hamdu li-llah. That’s because bii ‘idni allah is used only during very special occasions, when one is facing serious challenges or is having difficulty in life, marriage, work, or school. Whenever someone’s facing hardship, it’s common for him or her to say sa-‘uwaajihu haadhihi as-su’uubu bi ‘idni allah (sah- oo-wah-jee-hoo hah-zee-hee ah-so-oo-boo bee eed-nee ah-lah; I will face this difficulty, with God’s guidance).

bi SaHHa bee sah-hah; With strength

Even though this expression literally means “with strength,” it’s not necessarily used in a context of encouragement or support like bi ‘idni allah is. Rather, bi SaHHa is an appropriate thing to say after someone has finished a difficult task and can relax.

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For example, if a friend has wrapped up writing a book, closed a big deal, or ended a difficult case, you may say to him bi SaHHa, which signifies that your friend will be stronger as a result of accomplishing what he’s accomplished and now can rest a bit.

taHiyyaat tah-hee-yat; Regards

taHiyyaat is a religious term that Muslims use when they’re praying. After a Muslim finishes praying, he performs the taHiyyaat by turning once to the right and once to the left, acknowledging the two angels that Muslims believe guard each person. In addition to its religious affiliation, Arabic speakers commonly use taHiyyaat to send their regards. For instance, a friend may say to you, salaam ‘an ‘abuuka (sah-lam ann ah-boo-kah; Say hello to your father for me.) Similarly, to send your regards to a friend, you say, taHiyyaat.

muballagh moo-bah-lag; Equally

muballagh is an expression that’s similar to taHi- yyaat in that you use it to send regards. However, unlike taHiyyaat, muballagh is a response; that is, you use it after someone sends their regards to you. So if someone says to you, salaam ‘an ‘ukhtuk (sah- lam ann ook-took; Say hello to your sister for me), you respond, muballagh. Responding with this expression means that you acknowledge the message and thank the person for it on behalf of your sister. So make sure to say muballagh only after someone sends their regards — not before!

16_225233-ch12.indd 186 1/30/09 11:43:23 PM Chapter 12: Ten Favorite Arabic Expressions 187 tabaaraka allah tah-bah-rah-kah ah-lah; With God’s blessing

This expression is the equivalent of “God bless you” in English; it’s most commonly used among close friends or family members to congratulate each other on accomplishments, achievements, or other happy events. For instance, if a son or daughter receives a good grade on an exam, the parents would say, tabaaraka allah. Another very popular use for this expression is to express warmth and joy toward kids.

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16_225233-ch12.indd 188 1/30/09 11:43:23 PM Chapter 13 Ten Great Arabic Proverbs

ven if you’ve read only a few chapters of this Ebook, you’ve probably figured out that Arabic is a very poetic language. One aspect of the language that reinforces its poetic nature is the use of ‘amthila (am-thee-lah; proverbs). Proverbs play an important role in the Arabic language. If you’re having a conversation with an Arabic speaker or listening to Arabic speakers converse among themselves, don’t be surprised to hear proverbs peppered throughout the conversation. This chapter introduces you to some of the more common and flowery proverbs of the Arabic language.

al-’amthaal noor al-kalaam. al-am-thal noor al-kah-lam; Proverbs are the light of speech.

The role of proverbs in Arabic is so important that there’s a proverb on the importance of proverbs!

‘a’mal khayr wa ‘ilqahu fii al-baHr. ah-mal kah-yer wah eel-qah-hoo fee al-bah-her; Do good and cast it into the sea.

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Arab culture emphasizes humility and modesty. This proverb means that when you commit a chari- table act, you shouldn’t go around boasting about it; rather, you should “cast it into the sea” where no one can find out about it.

‘uTlubuu al-’ilm min al-mahd ‘ilaa al-laHd. oot-loo-boo al-ee-lem meen al-mahd ee-lah al-lah-hed; Seek knowledge from the cradle to the grave.

al-’ilm (al-ee-lem; knowledge) is an important virtue in Arabic culture. Arabs have produced some of the greatest legal, medical, and scientific minds in history, in no small part because Arabs like to instill in their children a lifelong desire to learn and continue learning every single day of one’s existence.

yad waaHida maa tusaffiq. yad wah-hee-dah mah too-sah-feek; A hand by itself cannot clap.

This proverb, which is common in the West but origi- nates in Arab culture, underscores the importance of teamwork, cooperation, and collaboration.

al-Harbaa’ laa Yughaadir shajaratuh hattaa yakun mu’akkid ‘an shajara ‘ukhraa. al-har-bah lah yoo-gah-deer shah-jah-rah-tooh hah-tah yah-koon moo-ah-keed ann shah-jah-rah ook-rah; The

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chameleon does not leave his tree until he is sure of another.

This proverb stresses the importance of foresight, planning, and looking ahead. A chameleon that is mindful of predators won’t change trees until it knows that it’ll be safe in the next tree it goes to.

khaTa’ ma’roof ‘aHsan min Haqiiqa ghayr ma’roofa. kah-tah mah-roof ah-san meen hah-kee-kah gah-yer mah-roo-fah; A known mistake is better than an unknown truth.

This metaphysical proverb has a deep meaning: It’s better for you to identify and learn from a mistake than not to know a truth at all. In the debate of known versus unknown knowledge, this proverb indicates that knowing is better than not knowing, even if what you know is not an absolute truth.

as-sirr mithel al-Hamaama: ‘indamaa yughaadir yadii yaTiir. ah-seer mee-thel al-hah-mah-mah: een-dah-mah yoo-gah- deer yah-dee yah-teer; A secret is like a dove: When it leaves my hand, it flies away.

A secret is meant to be kept close to your chest — in other words, you shouldn’t divulge a secret. As soon as you let a secret out of your “hand,” it flies away and spreads around. Just as a dove won’t leave unless you release it, a secret won’t become known unless you divulge it.

17_225233-ch13.indd 191 1/30/09 11:43:34 PM 192 Arabic Phrases For Dummies al-’aql li an-niDHaar wa al-kalb li as-simaa’. al-ah-kel lee ah-nee-zar wah al-kah-leb lee ah-see-mah; The mind is for seeing, and the heart is for hearing.

The mind is to be used for analytical purposes: obser- vation and analysis. The heart, on the other hand, is for emotions; you should listen and feel with your heart.

kul yawm min Hayaatuk SafHa min taariikhuk. kool yah-oum meen hah-yah-took saf-hah meen tah-ree- kook; Every day of your life is a page of your history.

You only live one life, so you should enjoy every single day. At the end, each day’s experiences are what make up your history.

li faatik bi liila faatik bi Hiila. lee fah-tek bee lee-lah fah-tek bee hee-lah; He who surpasses (is older than) you by one night surpasses you by one idea.

In Arabic culture and society, maturity and respect for elders is a highly regarded virtue. This proverb reinforces the idea that elders are respected, and their counsel is sought often.

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Arabic • A • favorite expressions, above, 25 183–187 accommodations Koranic Arabic, 1–2 hotels, 159–168 Modern Standard Arabic house, 168–169 (MSA), 2 accounting department, 124 musical instruments, accounting firm, 123 115–116 ache/ailment, 178 origins of English words, 5–7 additional, 129 regional dialects, 2 adjectives scholars, 104 common, 18–19, 95 transcription, 15–16 comparative forms, 96–98 writing and reading from described, 17 right to left, 7 superlatives, 98–99 Arabic characters after, 46 for consonants, 11–14 afternoon, 46 learning, 16 agree, 94 for long vowels, 10 airplane are/is sentence, 27–28 boarding the plane, 143 around, 105 immigration and customs, arrival, 143 145–147 to arrive, 144–145 registering at the airport, art, 105 141–142 articles, definite and reservations/ticket, 137–139 indefinite, 19–21 airport, 141–142 asking for directions airport terminal, 142 asking with courtesy, 152 aisle seat, 139 Could you repeat that?, alcohol, customs restrictions, 153–154 146 using command forms, all sorts, 79 155–157 allergy, 178 “where” questions, 151–153 alphabet asking questions, 63–64 about, 7 asking to speak to someone, consonants, 10–14 133 diphthongs, 10 aspirin, 180 vowels, 7–10 ate, 33 ambassador, 181 ATM, 53, 54 appetizers, 84 attendant, 162 appointment, 133–134 August, 51 April, 50 available, 162

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bus schedule, 150 • B • bus station/stop, 149 backache, 178 bus ticket, 149 bad, 95 business appointments, baggage handler/porter, 147 133–134 bakery, 89 businessman, 123 bank busy, 134 account, 52–54 ATM, 53, 54 deposit, 53, 54 • C • exchanging currency, 55–56 calendars, 50–51 bank teller, 53 car, 18, 148, 169 banker, 123 cards, 117 bathing suit, 115 cart, 147 bathroom, 162, 168, 169 cash, 52, 149 bathtub, 162 cellphone, 132 beach, 115 Celsius, converting to beach umbrella, 115 Fahrenheit, 71 beautiful, 19, 94 chair, 131 beauty parlor, 90 change, money, 149 bed, 169 cheap, 95 bedroom, 168 check(s), 52 beef, 76 chess, 117 beginning, 128 chicken, 77, 82 behind, 25, 152 classified ads, 119 below, 152 client(s), 123 beverages, 85 clinic, 179 bicycle, 148 close, 155 big, 18, 95 close to, 25 bill, paying clothes shopping, 100–102 hotel, 167–168 clothing store, 89 restaurant, 87 cloud, 115 birthday, 146 coffee, 74 blanket, 162 coin(s), 52 Blessing upon you! (favorite cold, 70, 178 expression), 185 colleagues, 124–128 boarding the plane, 143 color, 94, 101–102 body parts, 177–178 command forms/imperative book, 18, 20, 64, 131 verbs bookstore/library, 89 asking for directions, boy(s), 18, 92 155–157 bread, 74 giving orders, 129–130 breakfast, 74–76 company, 120, 123, 134 briefcase, 142, 166 computer, 131 bruise, 178 concierge, 166 burn, 178 condiments, 77 bus, 149–150, 155 consonants, 10–14 bus driver, 150 consulate, 180–181

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conversation desk clerk, 131, 165, 166 asking questions, 63–64 desserts, 84–85 with colleagues, 124–128 dialects, regional, 2 countries and nationalities, dialing a phone, 132 61–63 dictionary, 38–39 greetings, 57–59 did, 33 introductions, 60–61 difference, 53 telephone, 132–133 different, 100 weather, 69–71 dining. See meals; restaurant work, 67–69 dining room, 82, 168 yourself and your family, dining table, 82–83 65–67 dinner, 81–82 copies, 129 diphthongs, 10 cough, 178 directions cough medicine, 180 asking for, 91, 151–157 counter/meter (taxi), 148, 149 inside, 92 counting, 42–43 left, 92 country, 55 outside, 92 country names, 62–63 right, 92 credit card(s), 52, 53, 54 discounts, hotel, 163 currency, 52, 55 distribute, 128 currency exchange, 55–56 doctor customers, 100 explaining symptoms to, customs and immigration, 178–179 145–147 locating, 176 talking about your body, 177–178 • D • treatment, 179–180 dancing, 117 dominant vowel, 38 date of birth, 146 drawing/carving, 105, 116 day after tomorrow, 46 drinks, 85 day before yesterday, 46 drums, 116 days of the week, 49–50 dual, 29 debit card, 52, 53, 54 December, 51 definite and indefinite articles, • E • 19–21 east, 157 definite clause, 27 to eat, 80–81 definite phrases, 22 eat, 130 demonstratives Egyptian dialect, 2 common, 92–94 elders, respect for, 192 comparative sentences with, electronics store, 89 97–98 elevator, 92, 166 using, 26–28 embassy, 181 dentist, 176 emergencies department store/mall, 90 doctor, 176–180 departure, 143 hospital, 176 deposit, 53, 54 legal, 180–181

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emergencies (continued) fees, 53, 54 offering help, 175–176 fever, 178 shouting for help, 171–175 firefighter, 123 symptoms, 178–179 fish, 77, 82 employees, 120 fish store, 90 employer, 120 flight, 139 ending, 128 flight attendant, 143 English words, Arabic origins floor, 92, 166 of, 5–7 flute, 116 entertaining, 105 follow, 94 entertainment, 105 food, 73 entrance, 105 food bill, hotel, 168 entrees, 84 Friday, 50 entry, 147 friends, 115, 119, 125 Equally (favorite expression), from, 25 186 fruit, list of, 76 eraser, 131 furniture and supplies, etiquette 131–132 for asking a question, 153 future tense verbs, 39–40 for visiting a mosque, 109–110 evening, 46 • G • every, 150 garage, 169 Excellent! (favorite garden, 169 expression), 183–184 gate, 142 exchange desk, 55–56 girl(s), 18, 92 exchanging currency, 55–56 giving orders, 129–130 excuse me/pardon me, 153 glue, 131 exit, 105, 146 to go, 107–108 expensive, 95 go, 155 expressions, Arabic favorite, goal/purpose, 146 183–187 God bless you (favorite expression), 187 good, 95 • F • good evening, 61 factory, 123 Good luck!, 57 Fahrenheit, 71 good night, 61 fall, 71 goodbye, 58–59 family, 65–67, 115 greetings. See also small talk far, 95, 155 about, 57 far from, 25 with colleagues, 124–125 fare, 149 goodbye, 58–59 fast, 95 hello, 58, 132 father, 65 How are you doing?, 59 favorite expressions, Arabic, I am from…, 62–63 183–187 I’m doing well, 59, 61 fax machine, 131 My name is…., 60 February, 50 phone message, 135 What’s your name?, 60

18_225233-bindex.indd 196 1/30/09 11:43:45 PM Index 197

Gregorian calendar, 50–51 how many, 63 grocery store, 89 how much, 63 guitar, 116 human resources department, Gulf Arabic dialect, 2 124 humidity, 70 hungry, 73 • H • husband, 65 hairdresser, 90 the Hajj (pilgrimage), 110–111 half, 128 • I • handsome, 19 I believe, 157 he, 33 I don’t understand, 153 headache, 178 icons used in this book, 3 health insurance, 120 ID card, 150 health symptoms, 178–179 If God wishes it (favorite healthy, 179 expression), 184 heavy, 95 I/me, 29 he/it, 29 immigrant(s), 147 hello, 58, 132 immigration and customs, to help, 172–175 145–147 help imperative verbs/command offering, 175–176 forms shouting for, 171–175 asking for directions, help you, 134 155–157 here, 155 giving orders, 129–130 Hijaab (veil), 146 in, 25 hobbies, 116–117 in front of, 25, 152 holiday season, 164 included, 166 holiday/vacation, 120, 139, indefinite and definite articles, 159 19–21 home, 168 indefinite phrases, 21–22 home-cooked meals, 82–83 information, 122, 165 hospital, 176 inside, 92 host, 121 instructions, 143 hot, 70 interest rate, 53 hotel interests, 119 about, 159–160 interview, 120–121 checking in, 165–167 introductions checking out, 167–168 It’s a pleasure to meet choosing, 160–162 you, 60 length of stay, 164–165 My name is, 60 phone bill, 168 nice to meet you, 60, 61 price, 163 What’s your name?, 60 reservations, 162–165 is/are sentence, 27–28 hour, 46 Islamic calendar, 50, 51–52 house, 168–169 how, 63

18_225233-bindex.indd 197 1/30/09 11:43:45 PM 198 Arabic Phrases For Dummies

light, 20 • J • light (weight), 95 January, 50 living room, 168 jellaba (traditional look, 130 garment), 83 luggage, 142, 166 jeweler, 90 lunch, 76–80, 122 job/work. See also office environment finding, 119–122 • M • professions, list of, 68, 123 machines, 131 schedule for workdays, madam, 125 122–123 marble, 105 talking about, 67–69 March, 50 telephone, 132–136 marketing department, 124 July, 51 May, 51 June, 51 meals. See also restaurant about, 73 breakfast, 74–76 • K • dinner, 81–82 keep, 149 to eat, 80–81 keys, hotel, 166 home-cooked, 82–83 kitchen, 82, 168, 169 lunch, 76–80 knitting, 117 meat, 76, 82 knowledge, 190 Mecca, Saudi Arabia, 110 Koranic Arabic, 1–2 medical emergencies, 176–180 medicine, 179 meeting/conference, 128, 134 • L • men, 92 lamb, 76 menu, 83–85 lamp, 162 message, 135 laundry room, 168 meter, taxi, 148, 149 law firm, 123 Middle Eastern music, 116 lawyer, 123, 180 milk, 74 left, 92 minutes, 46, 47–48 left of, 152 mirror, 162 legal, 180–181 Modern Standard Arabic leisure (MSA), 2 beach, 115 Monday, 50 hobbies, 116–117 money movies, 106–109 about, 52 museums, 103–105 ATM, 53, 54 musical instruments, bank account, 52–54 115–116 currency exchange, 55–56 religious sites, 109–111 months, 50–51, 122 sports, 111–115 moon letters, 20 length of stay, hotel, 164–165 morning, 46 let’s go, 114–115 mosque, visiting, 109–110 library, 89 mother, 65

18_225233-bindex.indd 198 1/30/09 11:43:45 PM Index 199

motorcycle, 148 giving orders, 129–130 move, 130 interacting with colleagues, movies, 106–109 124–128 Mr./Sir, 134 key words and terms, MSA (Modern Standard 123, 128–129 Arabic), 2 phone conversations, museums, 103–105 132–136 music, 115–116 schedule for workdays, 122 musical instruments, 115–116 writing reports, 126–128 my name, 60, 61 okay, 157 old, 95 on, 25 • N • only, 79 name, 61, 135 to open, 105 name of countries, 62–63 ophthalmologist, 176 nationality, 62–63, 146 order, 79 near, 95 ordering at restaurant, 85–87 new, 95 orders, giving, 129–130 newspaper, 119 ordinal numbers, 43–45 next to, 25 orthopedist, 176 night, 46 outside, 92 noon, 46 north, 157 North African dialect, 2 • P • notebook, 131 pain symptoms, 178–179 nouns painting, 105 common, 18 paper clip, 131 described, 17–18 papers, 131 possessive, 161 pardon me/excuse me, 153 November, 51 parents, 65 number, phone, 132, 135 particular, 94, 100 numbers passenger, 143 about, 41 passport, 142 counting, 42–43 past tense verbs, 33–36 ordinals, 43–45 pastry shop, 89 pay-per-view, 168 pediatrician, 176 • O • pencil, 131 ocean, 115 pension, 120, 131 October, 51 percentage, 53 of course, 156 personal pronouns “of” or “to,” 48–49 forming “to be” sentences, offering, 122 28–30 office environment. See also prefixes and suffixes, 37–38 job/work suffixes for verbs in the past about, 122 tense, 34–35 departments, 123–124 to use with imperatives, furniture and supplies, 129–130 131–132 pharmacy, 179

18_225233-bindex.indd 199 1/30/09 11:43:45 PM 200 Arabic Phrases For Dummies

phone president, 134 about, 132 pretty/beautiful, 95, 105 asking to speak to someone, price, 163 133 printer, 131 beginning a conversation, professional, 123 132–133 professions, list of, 68, 123. cellphone, 132 See also work/job dialing, 132 pronouns, personal greeting message, 135 forming “to be” sentences, hotel phone bill, 168 28–30 making business prefixes and suffixes, 37–38 appointments, 133–134 suffixes for verbs in the past voice mail, 135–136 tense, 34–35 phone card, 132 to use with imperatives, phone number, 132, 135 129–130 photocopier, 131 pronunciation of difficult piano, 116 letters, 15 pictures, 128 proverbs, 189–192 pilgrimage to Mecca (the public phone, 132 Hajj), 110–111 purpose/goal, 146 pillow, 162 plane boarding, 143 • Q • immigration and customs, questions 145–147 answering at airport, 142 registering at the airport, asking for directions, 141–142 151–157 reservations/ticket, 137–139 asking with courtesy, 152 plane ticket, 137–139 Could you repeat that?, to play, 112–114, 116, 117 153–154 poetry, 117 immigration and customs, police, 123, 175 145–146 porter/baggage handler, 147 key question words, 63–64 position, 122 possessive noun, 161 pottery, 116 • R • Praise to God (favorite radio, 162 expression), 184 rain, 69 prefixes, 37–38 rainbow, 70 prepositions reading, 116 after comparative reading from right to left, 7 adjectives, 96 ready, 128, 130 building sentences with, receipt, hotel, 168 25–26 reception/reception desk, 166 list of most common, 152 Regards (favorite expression), “of” or “to,” 48–49 186 present tense verbs, 36–39 regional dialects, 2

18_225233-bindex.indd 200 1/30/09 11:43:45 PM Index 201

registering at the airport, selection, 100 141–142 sentence, 24 registration desk, 142 sentences religious prayer, 109–110 to be, 23, 28–33 religious sites is/are, 23–24 the Hajj (pilgrimage), using demonstratives, 27–28 110–111 using prepositions, 25–26 visiting a mosque, 109–110 was/were, 32–33 rental car, 148 without verbs, 23–24 repeat, 130, 155 September, 51 reports, writing, 126–128 she/it, 29 representative(s), 129 ship, 148 reservations shoes, 109 airplane, 137–138 shopping hotel, 162–165 asking for an item, 92–94 restaurant. See also meals browsing, 90–91 about, 83 clothes, 100–102 menu, 83–85 comparing merchandise, paying the bill, 87 95–98 placing an order, 85–87 department stores, 90 tipping the waiter/ getting around stores, 91–92 waitress, 87 grocery stores, 89 rice, 77 newspaper, 119 right, 92 picking the best item, right of, 152 98–100 room, 128, 160–161, 168 specialty stores, 89–90 room staff, 162 short, 19 rules, 109 shouting for help, 171–175 shower, 162 sick, 180 • S • sink, 162 safe deposit box, 162 sir, 125, 134 salad, 77 sister, 125 salary, 120 sitting room, 168 sand, 115 size, 79 sandwich, 77–79 skills, 119 Saturday, 50 slow, 95 saw, 33, 105 small, 19, 95 saxophone, 116 small talk say, 130 asking questions, 63–64 schedule for workdays, 122 countries and nationalities, school, 20 61–63 script. See Arabic characters greetings, 57–59 searching, 91 introductions, 60–61 seasons, 71 weather, 69–71 seat, 121, 139, 143 work, 67–69 secretary/assistant, 134 yourself and your family, section, 91 65–67

18_225233-bindex.indd 201 1/30/09 11:43:45 PM 202 Arabic Phrases For Dummies

snack, 73 teacher, 18 snow, 70 telephone soccer, 111, 114–115 about, 132 south, 157 asking to speak to someone, speak, 130 133 speak slowly please, 153 beginning a conversation, speaking Arabic, 15 132–133 sports, 111–115 cellphone, 132 spring, 71 dialing, 132 stapler, 131 greeting message, 135 station, 155 hotel phone bill, 168 to stay, 165 making business stop, 130, 156 appointments, 133–134 store clerk, 90 phone card, 132 stores voice mail, 135–136 browsing, 90–91 temperature, 69, 70, 71 getting around, 91–92 thank you, 59 types of, 89–90 that, 26, 93 storm, 70 then, 157 student, 18, 163 there, 155 subway, 148 these/those, 27, 93 suffixes they, 29 personal pronoun suffixes, this, 26, 93 34–35 Thursday, 50 for verbs in the present ticket, 139, 149 tense, 37–38 time suitcase, 142, 166 of day, 46–47 summer, 71 days and months, 49–52 sun, 69, 115 minutes, 46, 47–49 sun letters, 20–21 telling, 45–46 Sunday, 50 time of the call, 135 sunrise, 46 tipping sunscreen, 115 taxi, 149 sunset, 46 waiter/waitress, 87 superlatives, 98–99 to, 25 supplies for office, 131–132 to add, 128 sweets, 85 “to be” sentences swimming pool, 169 described, 23 negative (not to be), 30–31 past tense (was/were), • T • 32–33 table, 18, 82–83 using personal pronouns, take, 155 28–30 tall, 19 to offer, 122 tape, 131 to open, 53 taxi, 148–149, 155 “to” or “of,” 48–49 taxi driver, 148 to organize, 142 tea, 74 to print, 129

18_225233-bindex.indd 202 1/30/09 11:43:45 PM Index 203

to register, 142 verbs to try, 94 future tense, 39–40 today, 46 imperative, 129–130, tomorrow, 46 155–157 tour, 105 past tense, 33–36 tourism, 147 present tense, 36–39 tourist, 147 sentences without, 23–24 towel, 162 very, 105 train, 150, 155 violin, 116 transcription used in this visa, 142 book, 15–16 voice mail, 135–136 transliteration, 2 vowels transportation dominant, 38–39 about, 137, 147–148 double vowels, 8–9 airplane, 137–147 long vowels, 9–10 asking for directions, main vowels, 7–8 151–157 voyage, 140 bus, 149–150, 155 taxi, 148–149, 155 train, 150, 155 • W • to travel, 140–141 waiter/waitress, 85–87 travel agency, 90 walk, 156 travel agent, 138 was/were sentences, 32–33 traveler(s), 140, 145 water, 85 traveler’s checks, 55 wave, 115 treatment, medical, 179–180 we, 29 trip, 140, 159 weather trumpet, 116 rain, 69 Tuesday, 50 seasons, 71 turn, 156 talking about, 69–71 type/kind, 53, 79, 94 temperature, 69, 70, 71 Wednesday, 50 Welcome to all of you! • U • (favorite expression), 183 ugly, 95 west, 157 underneath, 25 Western civilization, 104 understand, 155 what, 63 university, 119 when, 63 until next time, 61 “where” questions, 151–153 white bread, 79 who, 63 • V • whole wheat bread, 79 vacation/holiday, 120, 139, 159 why, 63 veal, 76 wife, 65 vegetables, list of, 77 will open, 105 veil (Hijaab), 146 wind, 70

18_225233-bindex.indd 203 1/30/09 11:43:45 PM 204 Arabic Phrases For Dummies

window seat, 140 would like, 134 winter, 71, 162 to write with, 25 future tense, 40 With God’s blessing. (favorite imperative form, 130 expression), 187 past tense, 33–34 With God’s guidance! (favorite present tense, 36–37 expression), 185 writing Arabic, 7 With strength (favorite writing reports, 126–128 expression), 185–186 withdrawal, 54 women, 91 • X • workers, 122 X-ray, 180 work/job. See also office environment finding, 119–122 • Y • professions, list of, 68, 123 yesterday, 46 schedule for workdays, you, 29 122–123 your visit, 105 talking about, 67–69 youth hostel, 163 telephone, 132–136

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19_225233-badvert01.indd 206 1/30/09 11:44:09 PM 18_225233-bindex.indd 204 1/30/09 11:43:45 PM spine=.432”

Foreign Language/Arabic ™ Making Everything Easier! Your handy guide to everyday Arabic words and expressions Open the book and find: